The Iris and the Cherry Blossom
by maevargas
Summary: Sakura is chosen to become 1 of the 8 girls for Syaoran to marry, but he can't seem to get over his dead fiancee. When he meets Sakura he's taken in by her uncanny resemblance to his fiancee, and uncovers a deeper secret they weren't meant to find.
1. One

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom  
_**Chapter One**

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"Mother, please, hang on!"

A girl of 15 and her older brother of 17 knelt by their mother's bedside. Nadeshiko was breathing fast and hard, she was sickly and wouldn't last much longer.

Tears slipped down Sakura's face as she held her mother's cold hand in her own. Touya had his arm around his little sister, trying to hold back his tears.

Their father had passed away a few years ago. Since then it had been up to the family of three to survive. But Nadeshiko was always a bit weak, and the depression of their small village didn't help her health much. Medicine was scarce. Doctors were too expensive, and they only lived in the towns surrounding Tomoeda Castle, the heartland of the country.

Touya stood up to get the last of their money. He would go to Tomoeda to buy medicine. It would be at least a week of travel by foot, and a few days to find the right doctor, but they needed their mother.

Touya packed a few things and prepared some provisions."I'll be back, Sakura," he said, giving his precious sister a kiss on the forehead. He kissed his mother good bye and left their one-room home.

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Syaoran Li lay beside the pond on his favorite bench under the cherry blossom tree, head resting on his arms, eyes looking at the sky. He looked to his right where a bunch of purple iris' were planted in the flowerbed. He sighed. It had been 4 months since Ayame passed away. But those 4 months seemed like eternity, and he was trapped, frozen in time without her.

"Young Master," Wei, his butler called out to him from the porch. "Your mother will be returning tomorrow, should you not be preparing for her return?"

Syaoran got up and started walking towards the castle. Their garden was situated around the center building of the castle. Even though it was surrounded by rock walls, the sunlight managed to make it's way through and bring the greenery to life.

Ayame loved the garden. She'd take naps on that bench near the pond, and sometimes even sleep there at night until someone chased her back to her room.

His heart sunk as he made his way back to his duties as Prince of Tomoeda Castle, and back to reality.

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Sakura woke up to the sound of hooves pounding outside her house. She glanced at her mother, who seemed to breathing easily, sound asleep. Sakura checked Nadeshiko's forehead and was pleased to feel that her fever had subsided.

She then turned her attention to the noise outside. Neighing and voices could be heard from beyond the walls. She opened the front door to take a peek at the strangers outside.

There were 5 knights from Tomoeda. She could tell from their armor and the green and gold sashes they wore. One of the knights was wearing a green cape with a gold dragon printed on it. He seemed to be the leader, and he seemed to be upset.

"What do you mean we went down the wrong path?" the man in the green cape scolded.

"I-I don't know, this path just doesn't seem familiar." one of the men replied meekly.

"I leave my position to attend to the queen for one minute and you manage to get us lost!"

Sakura looked closer. Her eyes opened wide as she realized what the men were protecting. Attached to two horses was a bright white carriage, painted with the gold and green symbols of the Li Family, the royalty of Tomoeda.

"What is all this noise? Why have we stopped?" said a voice from inside the carriage. The door swung open and a woman stepped out from it. The knight in the cape ran quickly to her side to help her out. She wore a beautiful layered dress, sometime Sakura could only dream of owning. Her arms were slender and her face looked aged and wise. Her hair was neatly tied up in a fancy bun. But Sakura couldn't stop staring at the fancy piece atop her head.

A realization hit her. She was staring at Yelan Li, the Queen of Tomoeda.

The Queen continued to speak, "Where are we?"

"Uh, sorry, your highness, we don't know." All the knights were now bowing, and the one with the cape took his helmet off. He had long silver hair and pale skin. "But we will get you home before dusk tomorrow."

The Queen laughed. "Why are you being so serious, Yue? I'm in no rush, it's not like my son wants to see me.." She trailed off, and there was a hint of sorrow in her eyes.

Yue got up. "Let's go, men. We'll back track until we find the path that will lead us back." The knights started mounting their horses.

Without thinking, Sakura opened her door wide. "I know how to get to Tomoeda, you don't have to waste your time going back." Everyone turned their heads to her. She wore a plain dress, her long hair tied back in a bun, her face, plain. Sakura continued on. "My brother told me there's a fork down this road that divides into 3. You take the middle path and it leads you straight there."

The Queen got down from the carriage, lifted her dress and walked towards the girl. The closer she got to her, the more her eyes widened. Yelan stood right in front of the girl and knelt down to her eye level. She took out a dagger.

Sakura gasped. _What is she doing? _She couldn't move; her body was frozen. She held her breath and closed her eyes.

Then Sakura felt her hair fall to her sides; the Queen had cut her hair tie. It was long, reaching down to her elbows. She opened her eyes to see amazement in the Queen's face.

"Your name?"

"S-Sakura," she stammered.

Yelan took her long slender fingers and tilted Sakura's head. She did not flinch this time, Sakura held her ground. The Queen looked around at the shabby shack that Sakura had come out of.

"You must come back with me." Yelan commanded.

Surprised, Sakura spoke back, "Pardon?"

"Tomoeda, you must come back with me. There I will clothe you, feed you, you do not belong here."

Offended, Sakura answered back, "No. I do belong here. My mother and brother are here. This is my home." She was about to run back inside when Yelan stood up.

"I'm sorry," Yelan apologized. "I didn't mean it that way. May I speak to your mother?"

"My.. mother.." Sadness flashed across Sakura's face as she slowly opened the door to the Queen.

Yue started to protest, but Yelan went on in. She looked around the house, or room. Her eyes scanned the place seeing nothing of value, nothing that resembled her own dwelling. There was a table with three mismatched stools, a small stove, and furnace, and two large beds. Sleeping on one of them was a woman with long grey hair. Yelan moved closer. She then suddenly realized what she had just stumbled upon in the middle of the forest. She was frightened at the sight of the woman who lay unmoving on the bed.

"She's sick." Sakura said sadly. She was holding her mother's hand.

Falling out of her stupor, Yelan put a reassuring hand on Sakura's shoulder. "Grab everything of importance and pack it up. We will leave for Tomoeda in an hour." Sakura started to panic. "Don't worry, your mother will come with us. There, we will nurse her back to health."

"My brother.." But Yelan didn't hear her.

"We will talk about everything on our way. We must leave soon or we'll never make it.." Yelan glanced at the woman in the bed. It looked like the disease that Ayame died from. And from the looks of it, Sakura's mother didn't have much time. "We must get her to the doctors immediately."

Sakura nodded and started packing her things. There wasn't many things to pack, for most of their treasures had been sold to help them survive.

As the soldiers carefully brought Nadeshiko to the carriage, Sakura took one last look at her home. They had lived here in peace for as long as she could remember. With a heavy heart, she closed the door behind her and locked it.

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Meiling Li sat at the dinner table with her cousin, Syaoran. Like every other night, their meal was eaten with a one-sided conversation.

"Daichi asked me out again today." Meiling said aloud. "Of course I turned him down. He's not my type. And besides, Hina likes him. I can't betray her like that."

Meiling took another bite off her plate. She glanced over at Syaoran who hadn't touched his food at all. It was always like this. Meiling decided to say something about it.

"You know, they're all wondering when you'll start going back to school. You haven't attended classes for a whole semester!" Meiling stood up, hands on her hips. "Syaoran, are you listening to me?" She walked over to his chair. "You stay cooped up in your little library studying all day, you barely go out!

And when you do, it's always to that damned garden! I know you pass your tests and I know you behave and act like you're supposed to, but would it kill you to socialize a bit?"

Syaoran kept his head down. He forked at his food. The scratches against his plate broke the silence.

"I'm worried about you, Syaoran.." Meiling confessed. "I really.. ugh!" She stormed out of the dinner hall, leaving Syaoran alone.

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The night passed, uneventful. Yelan eyed Sakura suspiciously as she slept, her mother's head in her lap. She looked exactly like Ayame except for the green eyes. But it didn't matter. The only thing she cared about was her son, Syaoran.

What did frighten Yelan a bit was Sakura's mother. Yelan knew of her. She recognized Nadeshiko, even though she had grown a little older and paler. It was the past that Yelan was afraid of. She pushed the thoughts to the back of her mind.

They arrived at dawn. Sakura awoke just in time to watch as they passed the marketplace of Tomoeda City. Her eyes were wide with amazement. She had never seen so many people before, at least, not that she could remember. They trotted up a winding path towards the castle that stood atop the hill. Large gates swung open to let the party pass. Finally, they halted.

Sakura was helped out of the carriage by a guard while her mother was placed on a stretcher and taken into the castle. Yelan said something inaudible to one of the maids and then turned to Sakura. "She will show you your room. I will meet you in a little while." Yelan smiled.

Sakura nodded and followed the woman who was now carrying what little luggage she had. She was led up too many flights of stairs, turned into hallways that all looked the same, and finally reached a door at the end of a hallway. The maid unlocked it and set her luggage near the wardrobe.

Sakura looked around the stone room she was in; it was bigger than her whole house. She sat on the cold bed, her feet barely reaching the ground. Looking around, she saw a dresser with a mirror, a comfy-looking chair, small sofa, a wardrobe, and a door that led to a bathroom.

"If you need anything, just call." the maid said, showing Sakura a tiny bell beside the door. Attached to it was a string that led into the walls. "It's best you wash up and change. There are clothes in the wardrobe. Sakura nodded. The maid left without another word.

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Meiling put on her favorite red dress. She neatly combed her hair. She decided to leave it down today. Her auntie Yelan had just come back and told everyone to get themselves ready for a feast that evening. She had an announcement to make to the castle. Meiling wondered what it was.

"Hopefully, she has decided for Syaoran and me to marry!" she pondered out loud.

Tomoyo, her servant girl of the same age, rolled her eyes. She was used to Meiling talking on and on about Syaoran and her fantasies about their futures. She once promised Tomoyo that when they married, Tomoyo would be the one to look after their babies!

She thought nonsense of all her ideas, but she could only agree. After all, Meiling was part of royalty. Tomoyo was only a servant girl.

"Hopefully," Tomoyo replied as she tied a gold sash around Meiling's waist. "There you are, pretty as a pearl!" Tomoyo smiled.

Meiling looked at herself in the mirror. She never told Syaoran about her secret crush on him. She looked up to him since the day he saved her, and ever since then she slowly grew to adore him.

They were in the castle garden. He was 8, practising his swordsmanship. She was 5, admiring the koi fish swimming in the pond. Young Meiling threw a rock at the fish and laughed as they swam away in terror, looking for shelter from the falling rocks. "Look, Syao!" she said as she pointed to the fish. She got up to show her cousin, but she lost her balance and fell into the water.

Meiling didn't realize how deep it was. She gasped for breath, realizing she couldn't swim. She felt the oxygen slowly disappearing, and the top of the pond was slowly slipping away.

She was drowning.

She kicked and waded her arms, but she just couldn't bring herself to the top again. Finally, Meiling gave up. Her body was urging her to breath. She closed her eyes, as she watched the last ray of light shine through the water, the last light she'd ever see.

She woke up to voices. A man in a white coat was huddled over her, moving some sort of cold appartus around her chest. She heard her mother sobbing. Her eyes slowly opened as she got used to the piercing light.

She lay on the bench beside the pond. Meiling slowly got up as sighs of relief were heard. Her mother cried louder and rushed to her side. Meiling looked around and saw Syaoran, drenched with water, and a towel around his shoulders.

She didn't need anyone to tell her what happened. She already knew.

Their eyes met. He didn't say anything. Neither did she. Their eyes were locked for what seemed like eternity. Then Syaoran slowly turned away to get inside to dry off. There were no thank you's exchanged, no words of courtesy.

But since then, Meiling has never looked at Syaoran the same. She would forever be in debt to her cousin.

Staring now at her reflection in the mirror, 15-year-old Meiling wanted to be the one to take care of Syaoran. She lived through her first obstacle, the auburn-haired, brown-eyed Ayame. But now that she was gone, Meiling knew it was her time to shine. It was her that would save Syaoran this time.

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Sakura was lying in her new bed when a knock came at her door.

"Come in," she said, quickly getting up, straightening out the white dress she had picked out from the closet. It was Queen Yelan.

Sakura was surprised by her attire. She was dressed in a green and gold gown. Her long dark hair lay across her shoulders. She looked very regal and beautiful. A glittering headpiece shone atop her head.

"How are you finding your room?" Yelan asked.

"Umm, spacious, not what I'm used to." Sakura giggled nervously. "I don't supposed you have smaller rooms."

Yelan laughed. How honest the girl was. She took a seat at the mirror and turned the chair to face Sakura. "Now I know that we've just met, but I have a favor to ask." Sakura nodded quietly. "You see, I have a son. He's stubborn, quiet, and quite reserved. Now, I believe you can somehow make a difference."

Sakura gave her a puzzled look. "Pardon me, your majesty, but how am I supposed to do that?"

Yelan smiled inwardly. She may look like Ayame, but there were definite differences. Sakura was quite outspoken. "You may not know it yet, but you've already have a trait that will help you." She was, of course, talking about her looks.

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows. Yelan moved to sit beside her on the bed. Yelan took Sakura's freshly washed hair and started to braid it.

"You needn't worry about your mother. I have my personal assistant and doctor, Wei, looking after her right now as we speak. I trust him with my life, so I hope you do the same with your mother's. I will take care of you. I will clothe and feed you. I only ask of one thing, and that is to heal my son's heart. Bring him back to the way he used to be."

Sakura didn't know what to say. She was perplexed. How ironic it was to see a queen asking for help from a poverty-stricken child. She did the only thing she could think of and nodded her head. _It's only the prince,_ she thought to herself. _How hard could this be?_

Yelan finished and tied a ribbon at the end of Sakura's braid to set it. She got up and took a closer look at the girl. Now that Sakura was washed and clothed in white, she couldn't tell it was a different person; the person standing in front of her was Ayame. Ayame had always worn white dresses, her hair in braids, and a reserved smile on her face.

Sakura looked innocently up at the Queen, not really knowing what to do.

"I will call on you when I need you, but you must stay here in this room until then." She didn't like the sound of keeping put in a room by herself. She wanted to see her mother. "You are not to leave until I call you, understood?"

But Sakura couldn't go against the word of the Queen. She nodded in agreement. The Queen then said a few words of good bye and left Sakura alone.

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Touya had been walking for a day and a half. He was exhausted from the little food and rest he got. But the needs of his family drove him forward.

"Mother.." he whispered. His eyes were closing now. He could barely see the road in front of him. "Saku.. Sakura.."

On the side of the road, Touya collapsed.

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Sakura looked around her new room. She was, again, lying on the large bed, big enough to fit her whole family.

She got up and walked to the window. Unfortunately, her room didn't give her the view of Tomoeda. Instead, it led to the castle garden, a huge square of greenery and wildlife. Sakura was amazed by all the colors. Back at her home, flowers never bloomed like this.

It was then that a moving figure came to her attention. He came from one of the entrances to the garden and walked slowly to the pond. He was dressed in a black sleeveless shirt and loose black pants. He made his way to a large pink blooming tree and sat down. She couldn't get a clear view of him after that, but she continued staring anyway.

Another figure, a girl in a red dress, came running into view, though she didn't go as far as the pond. "Syaoran!" Sakura could hear the girl from her window. "Your mother is calling for you!"

The black figure, Syaoran supposedly, started to move. He stopped and took a look at his surroundings. It was then that they met eye to eye for the first time. She was looking straight at him, and he happened to pass his gaze across her window.

She reacted on instinct. Sakura smiled and waved. Thank goodness she was all washed and clean; she didn't want to look more out of place than she already was.

Then came a knock at her door. It was a servant girl with grey eyes and pale skin. "Excuse me, Miss Sakura, the Queen has entrusted me with the task of attending to your needs," she said politely as Sakura got up from her spot at the window and rushed to the door.

"No, no need to call me so politely," Sakura laughed. She had forgotten about the boy in the courtyard garden. "I'm in no position for anyone to call me a _miss_." Sakura smiled widely at the girl. She looked no older than she was. She held out her hand. "My name is Sakura."

"Umm.." the servant girl looked unwilling, but she couldn't refuse. "She took Sakura's hand and shook it. "I'm Tomoyo."

"Tomoyo, huh?" Sakura said. "Let's be friends!"

Tomoyo smiled and nodded.

Down below in the garden, Syaoran stood there frozen. His eyes were wide open, his face was pale. Had he just seen what he thought he saw? Or did his eyes deceive him?

"Come on, Syaoran! It's time for the dinner! Your mother is calling for you!" Meiling voice disturbed his thoughts but that smile still lingered.

Ayame had just smiled and waved at him through that window.

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"Thank you all for making it here," Yelan spoke to the ballroom full of guests. "As I'm sure you are all aware, in 4 months, my son, and heir to the throne, will be turning 18."

Yelan stood at the top of the staircase, Syaoran dressed in his royal garments beside her. A sword with the Li insignia carved into the handle hung by his side. He looked unaware, as if his mind weren't dwelling on the events of the present. He kept thinking back to Ayame, smiling and waving, from a third story window.

"I have gathered everyone this evening because you have daughters, neices, or relatives suitable to become my son's bride." The guests in the room started to stir. Low murmurs filled the room. Yelan continued on. "In 3-months time, there will be another banquet held by the royal family. It is then that my son will choose his bride. Enjoy this evening, for there will be much preparation in the days to come." Yelan took a sip from her cup as she walked away from the ballroom, leaving Syaoran in his daze.

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It was dark outside. The lamps were lit, making the garden seem somewhat wistful.

Sakura couldn't take it any longer. She couldn't stand being alone the whole day. All she did was stare out at the garden. No one entered or exited since that girl in the red dress and that boy named Syaoran. Castle life sure wasn't exciting.

Time for an adventure, she told herself.

Sakura opened the door and peered out into the hallways. No one. She walked down one hall and up the next, being very careful not to bother anyone. She didn't want to get caught.

Finally, stumbled across the garden entrance. It didn't seem so huge from the window, but from the ground it was massive. The lights made a path to the pond.

Sakura's legs ached from walking around the huge castle. Luckily she spotted a bench. It was the same one that the boy, Syaoran, had sat on. She quickly made her way, avoiding the pond, and sat her tired limbs down. She lay on her back and looked up at the dark sky. The stars looked beautiful, they always did. Even at her old home, they shone bright.

Her heart sank, thinking of her home.

Just then a rustling sound rang through the garden. Sakura sat up as she looked for the source. A shadowy figure stood at the garden entrance.

She couldn't see who it was, the light from the castle illuminated their figure, but made their facial features disappear. She slowly got up and started walking towards them.

For the second time that day, Syaoran was held in awe. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. A girl in a white dress, laying on the bench, looking up at the stars. It was like his memories were flooding back to him all over again.

But this was for real. He wasn't just seeing things. The girl in walked from the bench slowly towards him. That white dress, that long braided hair, that light complexion.

Could it be?

He held his breath and let out a single word.

"Ayame."


	2. Two

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Two **

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Syaoran hadn't slept for days. The thought of an Ayame look-a-like living in the castle haunted him. The night they first met wasn't a very pleasant one.

He first laid eyes on her in the garden, clad in white with long braided hair. Before he knew it, he found himself walking towards her. She stood in her place; their eyes never left each other's gazes. Syaoran's heart was pounding, and he was breathing heavily. Could it be? He held out his hand to touch her face. And then it happened.

"Don't touch me!" the girl screamed as she pushed his hand away and slapped his face.

Syaoran stood, his eyes wide and his mouth gaping. Had someone just actually hit him? "Do you know who I am?" he said with authority.

"I don't care who you are," was the reply. "You have no right to touch me." Sakura fought back tears, for speaking up for herself took more courage than Sakura felt she had. But she knew she was right.

Syaoran didn't know what to say. No one had ever spoken to him with such a tone, not even his mother. He let out a laugh.

Sakura was offended by this. Not only was this stranger invading her space, he was mocking her. "The nerve of you.." she said quietly. She slammed her shoulder into his as she walked out the garden, back to the safety of her stone cold room.

As she walked away, he couldn't help but become mesmerized by her beauty. It was the same beauty that had captured his heart a long time ago. That's not Ayame, he told himself. But he couldn't help feeling attracted and tied to the girl with the green eyes.

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A week had passed since Queen Yelan announced Prince Syaoran's 18th Birthday Celebrations, and the race to his heart. Tomoyo had been busy preparing rooms for the candidates. Every day was the same: prepare the beds, dust the wardrobes, clean the floors, change the curtains, everything had to be suited for the girls who were to stay in the room.

But at the end of every day, after dinner, Tomoyo sneaked quietly to the least inhabited part of the castle, to a room where anyone rarely went, Sakura's room.

She had been confined there the whole week and wasn't allowed out of the room unless the Queen called upon her. How lonely, Tomoyo thought, it was to be Sakura. At least Tomoyo was doing something productive.

Tomoyo's day had been a quite unusual, and she couldn't wait to tell Sakura. Tomoyo climbed up the steps, ran to the door, knocked three times, then once, and waited for a reply.

"Come in, Tomoyo." she heard Sakura unlock the door. They came up with a special knock that only the two of them would know, just in case someone unexpected tried to get in.

Tomoyo locked the door as quickly as she got in, for Sakura wasn't allowed to have visitors. Who knows what would happen if they were found.

"Today," Tomoyo started. "the Queen told us the competitors will be arriving in 2 days time. Can you believe it? I feel sorry for the prince, having to choose someone he barely knows."

Sakura turned her nose the other way and crossed her arms. "I could care less about Prince Syaoran." She said his name mockingly, causing Tomoyo to let out a laugh.

Tomoyo grabbed a brush from the dresser and sat on the bed beside Sakura. She took apart Sakura's long braided hair and started brushing it. This set Sakura at ease. Her mother used to do this when she was well.

Mother..

"He isn't a bad guy, you know." Tomoyo broke the silence.

"He might have not been back then, but he is now." Sakura pointed out. It didn't matter what he was like before. Things and people are subject to change. All that matters is now.

During earlier visits, Tomoyo would talk about how chivalrous Syaoran was. Perfect in his studies, duels, and very sociable. His only flaw was that he didn't know how to say no. If there was someone in need, he'd help them no matter how exhausted he was. He even helped Tomoyo carry out her duties once, because she was too weak to bring everything around by herself.

But Sakura knew something was up. She had watched him in the garden from her window these past few days. (It wasn't like she was creeping or anything. There just wasn't anything to do.) People would call him to come inside, or say that his mother was calling, or there was something important that he had to attend to, but Syaoran wouldn't move from that bench. The Queen herself once came out to fetch him, and he yelled at her to leave him alone.

Was this the Syaoran Tomoyo was talking about? And what did Yelan mean by healing her son's heart? The longer she stayed cooped up in her room, the more she resented the Royal Family. But she was promised her mother's recovery, so there wasn't much she could do.

Tomoyo cleared her throat. Sakura snapped back to reality. "Did you hear me, Sakura?"

"Sorry, Tomoyo, what did you say?"

Tomoyo sighed. "You are going to be apart of this whole competition. Didn't the Queen tell you?"

Sakura didn't know how to react. Yelan hadn't called her out of her room or come to visit since she first came to the castle. Did Yelan expect her to try to win the heart of someone she didn't love? Was this what she meant by healing his heart? If it was, why couldn't those other girls do it?

_Why me.._ ?

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Yelan had a long week. Every day had been spent in the recreation centers of Tomoeda. Endless lines of young and rich women had come to try out to become a competitor. They all wanted the fame and glory of being the next queen, and not to mention, the bride of her handsome son, Syaoran.

She watched as the young ladies danced, sang, and poured their hearts out, all vying for the chance to entrance the prince. No make up was allowed, no intricate clothing, no jewelry, just plain girls clad in a modest kimono, proving their right to become the next Queen.

It had been a formidable week, but somehow Yelan had ended up with seven names on her parchment. She had just sent out a messenger to deliver the news to the lucky seven who were to spend the next three months in the castle.

At the moment, she was sitting beside a sickly woman in the castle infirmary. No one except for herself and her highest trusted physician, Wei, knew of this room. It was kept a secret. And now this second soul had found it's way to the secret infirmary.

Yelan leaned over to the newest tenant and placed a hot cloth on her forehead. "Nadeshiko," Yelan whispered. "how I haven't seen you for a long time." Yelan stared deeply at Nadeshiko's face. "The life of a poor woman has left no marks on your face, and you still glow like the moon, you do, even when you're so close to dying."

A pang of resentment burned in the depths of the Queen's heart, and Yelan looked away. Seeing the woman in front of her brought back memories she hoped she'd never remember. A sad past that she wished to forget.

Would she have the same fate as Ayame? Yelan couldn't help but believe everything was her fault. She got up from her chair and walked over to the bed in the corner, where the first bearer of this strange sickness resided. Yelan pulled back the curtains to reveal a young pale girl. Her long braided hair had grown an inch since she last visited. Yelan would have to re-braid it. She was breathing lightly, and looked in peace.

"Ayame," Yelan spoke softly as she held the girls' frail hand. "I'm so sorry."

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Touya woke up, startled and sweaty from a bad dream. He rubbed his face and looked around. He lay in a bed beside a crackling fire, bandaged. A bowl of hearty soup and a glass of water were set up on the table beside him. Forgetting his manners and following his instincts, he ate. Where he was didn't matter at the moment. He needed energy to get out.

Yue walked in to see Touya, cramming the last of the meal into his stomach and gulping the glass of water down. Yue smiled. "Good to see you're awake."

Startled, Touya jumped out of the bed. For some reason, the moment he set his eyes on the white haired soldier, he felt at ease. He dropped his guard. "Who are you? Where.. where am I?"

"I am Yue." he started. "I am the First Captain for the Royal Family's Guard. You are in my quarters, in the Castle of Tomoeda. You, son, are lucky to be alive."

Touya had so many questions. How did he get here? What exactly happened? But the one thing eating at his soul was how long he'd been away from his family.

"Sakura, mother," Touya panicked. "Where are they?"

"Sakura?" It didn't take long for Yue to put two and two together, for he was the First Captain, a brilliant strategist, and unbeknownst to most, the Queen's right hand man and councilor. He remembered the poor girl saying something about a brother.

"Long brown hair, and green eyes?" he asked, remembering the girl's eyes in spite of her dirty attire.

"Yes! That's Sakura! Where is she?" Touya sounded desperate, and he was, for the well-being of his mother and sister mattered more to him than anything.

"Sakura, and your mother are fine. They have been taken to the castle long before I found you." Yue paused to think. "You cannot see them, though. Queen's orders."

Touya was furious. But he was dealing with a soldier here, and he knew no matter what, he could not win. All he could do was be submissive and listen. "What will happen to me?"

"That depends. What do you want to do?"

"I want to see my family."

"I cannot grant you that request."

Touya thought back to the times when his family was happy, when his father was alive and well. His father had made a fortune retiring as a soldier. And here was his chance to do the same.

"Can I trust in your words that my mother and sister are alive and safe?"

This was a safe bet, to which Yue replied positive. Apparently, the Queen had plans for the brown haired girl who looked much like the former fiancee of Prince Syaoran. And for that reason, she needed Sakura alive and well. As for the mother, he wasn't sure of. Her condition worsened with every step they took towards the castle. But she was in the hands of Wei, the best doctor in these parts.

"Then," Touya continued. "can you train me?"

Yue was taken aback. "Train you?" He scrutinized the tall scrawny teenager in front of him. "Not just anyone can become a soldier."

"Then excuse me," Touya said, heading towards the door. "I need to find my sister and my mother."

"Wait." This child interested him. He didn't have any respect for authority whatsoever. Moreover, it was apparent that the kid wasn't afraid of him, the most powerful man in Tomoeda. "If I train you, will you stay put and not go looking around for your sister?"

Touya thought it over. "I can't assure that."

"Then we don't have a deal and I'll have to kill you here."

Touya let out a long hysterical laugh. "You aren't going to kill a child, are you?"

"I have done it before." There was a seriousness in Yue's tone that Touya recognized, and he immediately stopped laughing.

"Alright. I won't. As long as you can update me on how they're doing."

"Okay."

"Alright."

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Syaoran lay down on the grass outside in the garden. The stars seemed more distant than usual, as he looked up into the sky. His week had been hectic, tiring, yet he couldn't bring himself to close his eyes. Dreams of Ayame haunted his sleep.

Along with his private study lessons, his mother forced him to take extra lessons on the art of women. He still laughed at the idea of a course about the behavior of women. They were all the same to him. Predictable, unreliable exploiters. He didn't want to get married. He didn't want to go though this engagement bullshit.

He already knew what would happen the next three months. Every girl that his mother sent to his door he would shun and hate, in hopes that they give up hope and leave the castle. He would never love another. Not after Ayame.

It was then that a light in one of the high windows of the castle caught his eye. He got up. _Wasn't that the same window that girl looked out of?_

Syaoran squinted. It was hard to see in the dark. But he saw clearly. The long auburn-haired girl was looking out her window, peering down upon him. She wore a sleeveless nightgown and her long hair was brushed neatly onto her shoulder.

They stared at each other for a few seconds until the girl frowned and closed her curtains. A few minutes later, the light in her room diminished and Syaoran was left alone again.

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Sakura shaded her eyes as the sun poured through the window of the second level main tea room. It was the first time in many days that she was allowed to step foot outside her room. Sakura looked out the window as carriages were pulling up to the front of the castle, and girls with long showy dresses exited, their chauffeurs bringing in mountains of bags and luggage.

Tomoyo poured more tea into Sakura's empty cup. She snapped out of her daze. "Tomoyo, you are not my servant." Sakura said. "Sit down and eat with me!"

Tomoyo nodded her head. "No, Sakura. I was assigned to tend to your needs by the Queen. Today, I'm your servant." She smiled undisturbed of her position.

Knowing how stubborn her friend was, Sakura let it be. She continued to stare out at the new guests.

Tonight was the beginning of the _Syaoran Wars_, as the two friends jokingly called it, a fierce battle to win the valiant heart of the handsome prince.

Sakura laughed to herself, as the last of the _contenders_ arrived. These girls had no idea of what they were getting theirselves into. Syaoran was far from a prince, at least, from what she observed from her window. He was lazy, and never did anything he was told to do. And he was the total opposite of charming. He never spoke to anyone, never smiled, what was with that attitude?

Definitely some sort of insane introvert. Sakura had concluded this a long time ago.

"Everyone's arrived," Tomoyo stated. "Shall we get ready for dinner?"

Sakura nodded as she got up from her place. She pulled her long hair onto her right shoulder and straightened out her dress. Tonight was going to be quite something.

Walking back to her room, Sakura and Tomoyo heard a _thump_ followed by a scream from the direction of the stairwell. The two girls rushed to see what it was, only to find long-haired blonde at the top of the steps, a suitcase at the bottom, and a man in a suit rushing down the flight of stairs. "Is everything okay?" Tomoyo asked.

The man in the suit reached the bottom of the steps to where Sakura, Tomoyo, and the open suitcase were. "Yes, everything is fine. This bag just seemed to slip out of my hand." He laughed nervously. He looked up the stairs to the young blonde woman standing there. "I'm sorry I gave you such a fright, Miss Misa,"

Misa smiled. "It's fine, Toro, as long as no one was hurt."

"Hey, are you by any chance.." Sakura stopped, suddenly feeling embarrassed for speaking out of line. Afterall, this girl was probably royalty, and Sakura was a mere townsperson caught up in a weird situation.

"Hmm?"

"You're one of the chosen candidates for the engagement, aren't you?" Sakura continued.

Misa smiled. "Yes. I am." She walked down the stairs, every click of her heel echoed through the corridor. She walked with confidence and fortitude, as if she commanded the place. Once she got to the bottom, she held out her gloved hand. "I am Misa Moreau, from the country to the west."

Sakura shook her outstretched hand. "I am Sakura Kinomoto, from, well, Tomoeda." She smiled. As Sakura looked closely, Misa had such a pale complexion, with blue eyes to fit her foreign physique. Blonde hair was rare in Tomoeda, and Misa stuck out like a sore thumb. Sakura continued, "This is my friend Tomoyo," Misa looked behind Sakura to see a servant girl with dark blue eyes, bowing.

"Nice to meet you." Tomoyo said politely.

"Nice to meet you too," Misa replied.

"Sakura, we must get going." Tomoyo spoke quietly.

"Oh, right!" Sakura forgot. "It was nice meeting you, Misa. We'll see you later!"

Misa bowed once more as Tomoyo and Sakura continued past the stairs to the end of the hallway. "Looks like you have a pretty decent rival. You must be cautious," Tomoyo giggled.

Sakura sneered. "She can have Syaoran.. I have no problem with that."

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Meiling wanted to see Syaoran before dinner. She snuck out of her room and wandered the empty hallways, being wary of any other person's footsteps. Staying close to the walls, she hurried. She got closer to Syaoran's room when a faint clicking of geta (traditional Japanese slippers) could be heard coming from in front of her. Meiling ran to the nearest door. On it sat a newly installed name plate reading _Akira Mogi_.

_Who the hell is Akira?_ Meiling asked herself. But she opened the door anyway, not wanting to be found, especially by the Queen. She shut the door quickly behind her as she exhaled slowly. Meiling took in her surroundings. She didn't realize there was someone in the room until they spoke.

"Who are you?" the stranger asked in a displeased tone. Meiling surveyed the room and saw a red-haired girl, her body wrapped in a towel, and her hair wet apparently from taking a shower. Meiling turned red.

"I am so sorry," she managed to spit out. "I'm hiding from–"

"Nevermind that, I don't care. Get out of my room."

"Let me explain, I'm trying to find someone but I mustn't get caught and–"

"Do I know you?" Akira said, interrupting Meiling again. The stranger walked closer to Meiling, glaring intently. _"You_ are in _my_ room. I don't care what your problem is, but you aren't going to burden me with it. Now if you'll excuse yourself and get the hell out of my room, I can continue what it was I was doing before you rudely walked in without so much as a knock!"

Meiling frowned. _How rude. The least she could do was hear me out._ Meiling excused herself, making sure the hall was clear before leaving. She slammed the door behind her. "Hmph."

It wasn't like her to leave an argument without retaliating, but she had a mission to complete that evening and she was running out of time. Meiling walked quickly down the corridor in the direction of Syaoran's room, not noticing a silver-haired girl walking behind her.

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It was finally evening, and Sakura studied herself one last time in the mirror. She wore another white dress, it seemed white dresses were all the Queen had for her, and her hair was braided neatly to one side, like always, hanging off her shoulder. Modesty was her style, and so she didn't touch the jewelry the Queen had given her. Nor did she touch the striking heels with gems and sequins. Her flats would do the trick. Besides, no one could see them through her long dress. And after all, what right did she have to dress in such lavish clothing? She was a commoner.

Tomoyo had left early to help prepare for dinner, and so she left Sakura alone to make her way to the lesser dining hall, where the party would be eating that evening.

By the time Sakura reached her the 4th staircase on the way. she was grateful she wore flats. But the girl she spotted, sitting on the staircase, massaging her foot, was not quite as lucky..

"Excuse me," Sakura spoke. The girl had her black hair tied in a loose bun, the folds of her dress surrounded her skinny body. "Um, are you alright?"

The corners of the girls' lips curled, giving off the smallest hint of a smile. "I'm just not used to walking around so much. This is the third time I've walked down this hallway. I think I might be lost."

Sakura helped the girl up. "Yeah, I know what you mean. When I first got here, I couldn't find anything." She let out a giggle. "By the way, my name is Sakura."

The girl was now standing, she was just as tall as Sakura was. But she stood with more confidence, which intimidated her, as if there was more to this girl than a frail stature and a mysterious personality.

"Kaya." Again, she smiled lightly and not fully, Sakura noticed.

"Pleasure." Sakura responded, trying to hide the nagging feelings to ask why Kaya what was wrong with her smile. "Shall I escort you to the dining hall?"

"Yes, please. That would be great."

The two didn't talk much. I mean, there wasn't much to talk about. Kaya would shoot down every question that didn't involve Syaoran. Sakura would curtly reply to every question Kaya asked, for all she talked about was Syaoran. So early in their conversation, Sakura knew they would be talking much.

"You two. Over there." a cold voice called from behind. The two new acquaintances turned their heads to face this uninvited stranger. She had long brown hair. There was a tint of red in her dark eyes. She wore a stunning silver dress, with glass slippers to match. "Where's the dining hall?"

Kaya face turned sour, as if she just laid her eyes upon something disgusting. "Yuka."

The new girl walked closer. "Oh!" she exclaimed. "Kaya! I didn't recognize you. What are you doing here? You looked like a servant!" Yuka's dark red eyes turned to meet Sakura's emerald ones. "And you, servant girl, where is the dining room?"

Sakura knew she didn't like this girl already._ The nerve of this.. pig-headed–_

"The dining hall is back there," Kaya pointed in the direction the two just came in, and was obviously lying to Yuka. "Now if you excuse us.." She grabbed Sakura's hand and quickly led her forward, to where the real dining hall was. Once out of earshot, Kaya whispered to Sakura, "She is trouble. Do not get yourself tangled with that dirty woman, if you know what's good for you."

Sakura nodded, not inquiring as to why she was so venomous, or even how the two knew each other. They had already reached the dining room. Meiling and the blonde from earlier, Misa, were already seated, as for 3 other girls she didn't know. Herself and Kaya made 7, so everyone was accounted for, except Yuka, who would be late, to which Sakura laughed inwardly at.

Sakura and Kaya took the seats closest to the head of the table. Meiling's eyes widened, watching them carefully, especially the auburn haired girl. _Is that Ayame? No, it couldn't be. Ayame didn't have green eyes.._

Just then, Queen Yelan walked in. The girls all stood, save Sakura, who quickly followed suite. Trudging behind the Queen was Prince Syaoran. It took all the self-control Sakura could muster not to sneer at him. The Queen took her spot at the head of the table whereas the Prince took his spot at the opposite end.

They all sat down. Yelan looked at her guests and noticed someone was missing. "It seems a certain someone is not here yet." She scanned the girls faces. "Yuka."

"She must have gotten lost." Sakura said quietly. Kaya covered her mouth to hide a giggle.

The Queen looked at Sakura. "Yes, most likely." Yelan pointed to one of the servants. "Go find her."

At the other end of the table, Syaoran couldn't believe his eyes. There she was. The girl who had been haunting him these past few days. Who was she? Syaoran didn't know. But she looked so much like Ayame, he wanted to reach out and touch her.

"Who is that?" he whispered to Meiling, who had chosen the seat right beside his.

Meiling nodded and shrugged her shoulders. "Beats me, but that is not Ayame."

Syaoran narrowed his eyes. His cousin was right, and he had already known. That wasn't Ayame. "Ayame's eyes were brown.." he trailed off.

Meiling finished the rest of his sentence. "Hers are green."

A bit disappointed, Syaoran looked away. It was funny how he had his hopes up when he knew it was impossible for Ayame to come back. She was dead. End of thought.

Yuka came in 10 minutes later but the Queen didn't question what had happened. But by the look on her face, Sakura and Kaya could tell she was but willing to tell on the two of them. No longer than when Yuka took the last remaining seat did the food appear. Platter after platter, the table was full of all sorts of dishes, vegetables, and fruit. Sakura was in awe. Never before had she had a feast so grand.

After the plates were taken away and dessert, composing of ice cream and sugar cakes, was served, Queen Yelan spoke. "I have picked all 8 of you to become candidates for the betrothal to my son, Syaoran." She pointed across the table where all heads turned to gaze. Syaoran, on the other hand, had his elbow on the table, his cheek in his palm, and was gazing ignorantly at the wall.

"Syaoran." the Queen spoke.

As if returning from a trance, Syaoran straightened. "Uhh.. yeah. It's nice to have you all in our company." he said halfheartedly.

The Queen continued. "The rules are easy. You all have 3 months to claim your prize as future Queen of Tomoeda. During your stay here, you are not allowed to leave the castle. You will compete for the Prince's attention and affections. If, however, you do wish to leave, you may do so. The Prince also has authority to banish you from the castle, only if the reasons are, well, reasonable. You may venture wherever you like, as long as you do not go past the South tower and further downward. The Southern part of the castle is strictly off limits and will result in immediate banishment. Any questions?"

A girl Sakura didn't know, with long black hair and wise grey eyes raised her hand. "Emmalyn?"

The girl named Emmalyn rose from her seat. "Um, what will happen by the end of 3 months if there is more than 1 girl left?"

Queen Yelan answered as fast as the question was asked. "It is all up to Prince Syaoran in the end, he will choose who he marries, right son?" Again, totally unaware of the situation, Syaoran grunted from his position at the other side of the table. He didn't care. He'd find a way to banish all these girls anyway. He didn't want to marry. He had other things to think about.

"How about we make some introductions, hmm girls? We'll start on this side." She pointed to Misa.

The blonde stood. She spoke with confidence, although her fidgeting with her hands proved otherwise. "My name is Misa, I'm from a land far from here, but I will do my best to make my family and country proud, and hopefully to strengthen the ties of our countries, and become allies." She bowed to the Queen, and then turned to do the same to Syaoran.

As soon as Misa sat down, Emmalyn stood up. "My name is Emmalyn. I'm from Tomoeda. In fact, I go to school with Meiling and Haruka over there," she pointed to the two girls sitting beside her. The silver-haired Haruka sitting right next to her and Meiling sat at the end of the table. "I love books." she continued. "I love to read. And in my family, it's a custom that women never cut their hair until they lose their-"

"That will be enough, Emmalyn. Thank you." The Queen cut in. "Next."

The silver-haired girl stood up. She spoke quietly. Sakura could barely hear her. "Um.. my name is Haruka." And she quickly sat down. Sakura guessed she wasn't used to speaking in public.

It was Meiling's turn. Sakura recognized her as the girl in the red dress, running after Syaoran. "I am Meiling Li, of the Li clan, and I am Prince Syaoran's cousin. We grew up together, you know. Don't think this competition will be easy. Because I'm in it." She sat down haughtily.

The next to speak was Yuka. She took up, poised and graceful. "My name is Yuka, from the neighboring town, Ruuju, right across the bridge. My family is one of the wealthiest in the city, and also one of the most talented." Her dark red eyes bore made their way to Kaya's. "And I'm pretty sure I will win this." She spoke, her eyes never leaving Kaya's.

Before the Queen could make any remarks, the next girl stood up. She had red hair and black eyes, the same girl Meiling had her unwelcomed meeting with. "My name is Akira Mogi and I honestly don't care whether I win or not. No actually, I don't care at all." She sat back down. Some of the other girls looked at each other with confused eyes.

It was Kaya's turn. She stood up, probably the most convincing of the bunch, Sakura thought to herself. "My name is Kaya. I am also from Ruuju, in fact, I grew up with Yuka. She smiled kindly at Yuka's direction, only to receive a sneer. She then laid her violet eyes on Syaoran as she spoke her well chosen words. "I am honored to be here, competing with all of you. Our Queen must have seen something amazing in all of us, and I'm more than honored to be in your companies. I look forward to creating new friendships," her eyes found their way back to Yuka. "And re-establishing old ones." She bowed before she sat down.

Finally it was Sakura's turn. Meiling had been waiting for this, along with Haruka and Emmalyn, who knew of Ayame because they all went to school together. They found her strong resemblance to the deceased Ayame very peculiar and they were all ears for what this girl had to say.

Unbeknownst to all, Syaoran had been waiting for this too.

The green-eyed stranger stood up, straightening her white dress and clearing her throat. "Hi." She stated bluntly, waving her hand to no one in particular. "I'm from Tomoeda, like most of us here. Actually, more like the outskirts of town than anywhere in it. Umm," She looked at the Queen who smiled in return. "I honestly don't know why I'm here, I'm not used to these wealthy customs, or the idea of servants and cooks, and even people who just stand there to open doors for me." She let out a shy giggle. "But I will try my best, for the Queen, who asked me to do so." She bowed and sat down.

Frustrated, Meiling said aloud, "For Heaven's sake, what's your name!"

Embarrassed that she left out the most important part, Sakura stood up again and found her gaze looking toward the end of the table, to where Syaoran sat.

"My name is Sakura," she said plainly. "Nice to meet everyone."

That one sentence was the first thing Syaoran had fully paid attention to the whole night.


	3. Three

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom  
_**Chapter Three**

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The first two days had gone by pretty eventless, at least in Sakura's opinion. Tomoyo had to leave to escort the Queen to meet some important noble from a ways away. Only the most trusted servants were allowed to be a part of the Queen's party, and it was an honor that Tomoyo was chosen. Sakura just wished Tomoyo didn't have to leave for so long. It would be two weeks _minimum _for their venture, and Sakura wasn't enjoying the loneliness.

She walked down the now familiar hallways to the dining room where breakfast was being served. Her stomach growled.

Sakura politely bowed to the guards stationed at the dining rooms doors as they opened them. She was ushered into the hall where 3 of the other girls were already seated and eating. Sakura took a seat beside Haruka. Her silver hair was tied to the side of her pale face. "Good morning, Sakura" she smiled.

"Good morning, Haruka," Sakura greeted back. Over the few days since the girls arrived, Sakura only really made friends with Misa, the blonde foreigner; Kaya, the one who stood up to her in front of Yuka; and Haruka. She hadn't talked to Meiling much, or Emmalyn, the one that blabbed too much. And then there was Akira, who seemed to always keep to herself and always had a look of complete boredom and indifference on her face. And lastly there was Yuka. Sakura had heeded Kaya's wise words and kept her distance from the brunette.

It was nice to see that Meiling and Emmalyn were the only others that were eating breakfast at the moment. Sakura smiled at them, and they smiled back. If only this weren't a competition, it would have been all that much easier to make friends with these girls. But Meiling and Emmalyn didn't talk to her, despite Meiling's obvious overconfidence and Emmalyn's motor mouth. Haruka, the quietest of the 3 school friends, opened up to Sakura.

"How was your sleep?" Haruka asked.

"It was alright." Sakura replied. "But I couldn't sleep until past midnight. I don't know why."

"Oh? I couldn't sleep either. I ended up taking a stroll around the castle."

"Really? Next time come to my room! I'd definitely want to go with you." Sakura said excitedly. It was true. There wasn't much she did here at the castle. She wasn't being very helpful to the queen. She hadn't even tried to talk to Syaoran, nor was she interested.

"Well actually.." Haruka started, a blush creeping to her cheeks. "The Prince kept me company last night.."

The quiet silver-haired girl waited for a look of jealousy or disbelief, pretty much any kind of response from Sakura. But she received none. Sakura politely took a bite of her pancakes and looked at Haruka. "And?" Sakura said indifferently.

"Umm.." Haruka said nervously. She expected Sakura to be at least a bit envious, maybe angry or sad, that Haruka had gotten a chance alone with Prince Syaoran. "Well he walked me around for a bit before I retired to my room. He's really kind, you know."

Sakura scoffed.

"Hmm? Did you say something?"

"Nah, just talking to myself." Sakura thought back to all the encounters she had with the prince. It's not that Sakura hated him, she just didn't take a liking to him. There wasn't much to like about him, except that he was amazingly handsome. It's just that he was so gloomy. He was a prince, for goodness sake! He had everything in the world, yet he chooses to act distant and sullen.

Not her type of prince. She'll admit, he was a wonder to look at, but that's all he had. And Sakura wasn't the shallow type. Sure, she was intrigued by the mystery of Syaoran Li, and his mother the Queen, but she didn't make it her business to poke around at other people's lives. Afterall, everyone had their own burdens to bear.

"You shouldn't hate him, you know," Haruka added.

"I don't _hate_ him," Sakura said, frustrated. She couldn't find the word to describe what she felt. Their first meeting, he tried to play some act and touch her. When he talked to her for a second time, he tried prying into her family. Who did he think he was? They didn't even know each other.

"He's kind in his own ways, even though he may not seem like the type." Haruka blushed. "I- umm, I saw you two talk in the garden after the opening banquet." She confessed. "I can tell you don't like him."

Sakura looked away, realizing she herself had been rude to the Prince that night.

"May I ask why you're here then? Why did you enter if you don't like the Prince?" Haruka looked worried.

It wasn't as if Sakura was after the fame, or the fortune. She didn't want the titles or the power. She just wanted to be happy in modesty with her family. The only thing tying her to this absurd rivalry was her mother's health and her deal with the Queen.

"It's not because I want the riches," Sakura confessed. "But, I have my reasons."

Haruka nodded in agreement. She knew what it was like to be in Sakura's position, after all. She was content, though, knowing that Sakura wasn't in it to gain power. That was enough for her.

"Well, Sakura," Haruka said calmly. "It was a pleasure getting to know you." She smiled fully, without the shyness she normally wore.

Confused, Sakura looked up at the smiling girl next to her. "We could be really good friends," she replied, meaning it. Haruka was honest and humble, like Sakura was. But why did Sakura feel like she was going to leave?

Her thoughts were interrupted by the rude bickering of the two girls who had just walked in. Kaya and Yuka, in a spat as always.

"And what were _you_ doing so close to the Prince's room?" Kaya asked pointedly.

"Mind your own business, bitch." Yuka spat back.

"This _is_ my business. I intend to make him _mine._ Don't you even think about getting close to him!"

"Why?" Yuka looked back at Kaya with angry eyes and a deathly stare. "You don't always get what you want, you little suck up. You're lucky no one knows you like I do."

"Oh?" Kaya's voice because louder with every word. "And who are you to speak, hmm? The girl who always gets everything and is never satisfied? You should be lucky no one knows _you_ like _I_ do."

It was a while before Yuka finally opened her mouth. "Mind your own business, you fake." Yuka stared back with mean dark eyes. Kaya blinked, standing frozen, as if Yuka cast some spell on her.

Sakura watched the two girls, and her eyes followed Yuka as she left the dining room, not even bothering to eat anything. But Sakura swore she saw something glimmering at the brim of Yuka's dark red eyes.

Tears.

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The servant pushed her cart out of the Prince's room. She had just delivered the Prince his breakfast. He always ate alone in his room. After closing the doors, the servant wondered to herself, how anyone could get by without socializing the way Prince Syaoran did.

Inside the dark room, Syaoran lay on his back, foot crossing the other knee, one had behind his head, the other swinging a golden chain in the air.

The necklace had belonged Ayame. It was a locket her mother had given to her when she was a baby. But just less than a year ago that another pendant was added to the thin gold chain. The diamond engagement ring he had used to propose. Syaoran promised the day he turned 18 that he would marry her.

If only her sickness hadn't overwhelmed her, he wouldn't have to be going through this marriage partner bullshit. None of these girls were Ayame. Well, Sakura did come pretty close.

He remembered the night after the introductions were made at dinner. Everyone left to their own rooms. Syaoran needed some air and headed straight for the garden, but Sakura had beat him to it. As soon as her emerald eyes caught sight of him, she stood from the bench and began to make an exit.

"Sakura, was it?" he asked calmly. She stopped walking and turned to face him. There was something about her face that made his heart ache, that long beautiful brown hair, braided to one side. She wore a white dress, hiding her figure. The only differences that brought him back to reality were her emerald eyes and the flats peeking from the hem of her dress. Ayame's eyes were brown, he recalled. And she always wore the silver heels with the gems and sequins she loved so much.

The girl in front of him only nodded. As she turned to make her exit.

"Wait," he said abruptly, causing her to turn around once again.

"Is there something I can do for you?" she said, no pleasantries, no added titles of respect, no spite, it was just a plain question with no hidden meaning. But her voice resounded in his head and the Prince closed his eyes.

He missed her so much.

The wind picked up and he heard Sakura shiver. He opened his eyes and asked, "Do you, by chance, have any siblings?"

Sakura furrowed her eyebrows at such a random question, but answered nonetheless. "One. A brother."

His heart sank again as he tried to figure out why their resemblance was impeccable. "Is that all?" she asked.

He wanted her to stay, truthfully. He wanted to stare at her and remind himself of the love he once had with Ayame. Her face brought back memories of better, happier days, and he couldn't bring himself to return to the sullen darkness he was living in these past few months without her.

But she was not Ayame. And her eyes reminded him of that. The emerald tint was foreign to him. "Yeah," he replied. "You can go."

She did not bow. She did not smile. She only turned around and walked away.

Who was she? Why did she look so much like Ayame? He remembered how he grew up with Ayame in the castle. She was by his side ever since they were babies. Ayame's parents had died in the war with the Southern country. They left their orphaned daughter to Queen Yelan, since she and Ayame's mother were best friends.

Was it possible that two girls could look so exactly alike and not be related? Maybe Syaoran had to find more about Sakura to get to the bottom of this. He couldn't stop thinking about it, and about her, Sakura, who treated him so different, like he was equal to her even if he was the Prince of Tomoeda.

Syaoran grunted. _Enough of this, I'm hungry._

He took his seat at his desk and started to eat.

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Touya had only been training for two and a half weeks, yet Yue was amazed at how fast the teenager picked up things. He had amazing aim using the crossbow, his strength was formidable while exchanging sword blows, and his intelligence was almost like that of his own.

Yue smiled as he watched the trainees leave the training field. They had just practiced hand to hand combat, and were heading to wash up and have lunch. Yue spotted Touya and called out to him.

Yue was also amazed at how fast the boy earned the respect of a couple of the trainees, who had been training for years. Even the trainers respected him for his diligence, hard work, and determination. "How are you holding up?" Yue asked as Touya neared him.

"Good, thanks." Touya flashed a boyish smile. There was no doubt that if there were girls around, they'd fall for his smile and good looks. Not to mention his talent in pretty much everything. "How about you?"

"I'm leaving for a peace meeting with the South tomorrow. Then I'll be heading to the west to escort the Queen back to Tomoeda. You can handle being by yourself, right?"

Touya had been staying in Yue's room for two reasons. Yue didn't think it necessary to tell the Queen that the green-eyed girls' brother was training; after all, training of new recruits was under his jurisdiction. Second, he needed to keep watch of the boy, he didn't want him running off to find Sakura and jeopardizing whatever plans the Queen might have for her.

But in the short two weeks Yue spent with the kid, he had learned to trust him. Yue dealt with many liars and such who say they can be trusted, but Yue knew that Touya would keep his word. They had made this agreement in the beginning: Touya would not look for his sister.

"I'll be fine." There was a glint in Touya's eye. "You know, for the first time I feel like I'm doing something meaningful, especially for my family. Ever since my father passed away, I wasn't much of a help to them. I couldn't earn enough. But now, I feel like I'll be making enough to provide them with everything for as long as they live! It's the best feeling!"

Yue smiled. He somehow felt the passion for his work return to him, just for a second; the passion that drove him to protect this bustling city of Tomoeda, and the lands around it, his country. But he lost his respect for what he did years ago, after the Southern Wars, although he never admitted it openly, and hardly believed he believed in it himself.

Yue knew Touya would be fine. He asked out of formality. Touya was becoming more and more like him as days went on. Yue nodded. "Wash up. And keep the room clean while I'm gone."

Another one of Touya's boyish smiles, and he ran off towards the bathing area.

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Haruka never admitted it, but next to being shy, she was a very emotional girl. When she was happy, she cried. Angry, she cried. Bitter, she cried. Any strong emotion would bring her to tears, which was why she was crying at the moment.

She remembered the first day in the castle. All she wanted to do was speak to Syaoran. She even followed Meiling around, hoping she would lead her to Syaoran's room. But it was no use when Meiling got caught by one of Syaoran's maids, and asked her to get ready for the nights events. Dejected, Haruka never got her chance that night.

So last night, she had gotten lucky and stumbled across the library. She couldn't sleep and went for a stroll, like she told Sakura. Truth was, Haruka wanted to talk to Emmalyn or Meiling, and just got lost along the way. She didn't know she'd be lucky enough to find Syaoran walking out of the library, holding a book they were studying just recently in class.

The night before..

"_Oh, Haruka. What are you doing up?" Syaoran game a lame smile to the silver-haired girl._

"_Your highness," she said as she bowed her head. "I was trying to find someone, but I got lost.." She shyly looked away, avoiding Syaoran's questioning stare, and his amber eyes. Although she was a shy person, she was more comfortable around Syaoran. They attended the same school for 10 years, after all._

Syaoran chuckled quietly. "Should I walk you back to your room?"

Haruka nodded, especially now that she had this chance to talk to him.

Tears slipped down her face as she packed the rest of her belongings. She refused help from the ladies-in-waiting. She wanted to pack up herself, alone, left to cry without the judgment of others.

Syaoran had asked her to leave the castle.

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She was furious. What did Haruka do to deserve getting kicked out of the castle? She wanted answers and she wanted them now. Haruka was so kind-hearted, and not to mention super shy. So why did Prince Syaoran banish her?

She knew where to find him. He was in the garden, lying on his back, as usual. As she stormed into the peaceful garden, breathing heavily and stomping as hard as she could, Syaoran turned his attention towards her. She took him by surprise. Ayame had never got mad, so the expression on Sakura's face was new to him.

He slowly got off the bench as she marched up to him and pointed an accusing finger. "You." She said bitterly. "What did Haruka do to you? Why did you make her leave?"

No one _ever_ talked to him like that. _No one_. And he didn't like it. He didn't like being demanded an answer, not that rudely. "How dare you!" he said in a low but stern voice. "Who are you to talk to me like that, and stick your nose in my affairs?"

"Ex_cuse_ me!" Sakura laughed harshly. "Who am _I_? Weren't you the one who asked me about my personal affairs first? Haruka is my _friend_. I have a right to know." She didn't care that he was a prince. She wouldn't have people treating her friends that way, making them cry and such.

The Prince crossed his arms. "I make my own decisions. I do what I want. You can't change the fact that I've banished her."

Sakura raised her hands in defeat and shook her head. She stared into his amber orbs; how handsome he was indeed, from his unruly hair to the irritated look on his face, and even the way he stood. But she ignored his attractiveness. Her mother had taught her always to see the beauty _inside_ of everyone.

But all she could see was ugly.

Blinded by frustration, she shouted, "You are the most selfish, conceited person ever. You think you can do whatever you want with whomever you want, just because you wear a crown on your head! Well you know what? One day you're going to be king and you're going to be terrible one. Haruka is honest, and kind, and everything you aren't. If you weren't so full of yourself, brooding over your _terrible _life, then maybe you'd see it. She could have done wonders to your personality!"

He was stunned. Appalled. Prince Syaoran was beside himself with anger, yet couldn't bring himself to utter a word.

"You disgust me." Sakura spat out as she turned on her heel and walked away, leaving him speechless once again.

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"Haruka!"

Someone had called her name from the door of the castle. Haruka was just getting into the carriage. She turned around and saw Sakura's familiar face, although it was stained with a few tears. "Sakura," she said, her voice slightly wavering.

"You didn't do anything! Maybe we can talk to the Queen, she can do so–"

Sakura was hushed by a smiling Haruka. "I do not belong here," she confessed as she pulled Sakura into a hug. "Please, don't hate him." Haruka pulled away and smiled again. "I'll come to visit, alright?"

Sakura could only nod as she got inside and the driver closed the door. She stepped back as the white carriage started to move. Her emerald eyes watched until they lost sight of Haruka.

From the window, Syaoran watched as the brown-haired girl hid her tears. He wanted to comfort the crying girl, just like he did when Ayame cried. He sighed and returned to the garden.

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Author's Note: Thanks for the reviews (: I'm trying to make this story move along faster, so prepare for longer chapters. Also I might revise the beginning chapters, but don't worry, you won't have to re-read them to understand the story.

So I recently got kittens! They're fully black with blue eyes. Super cute. I've been calling them kitty 1 and kitty 2, since I'm not very creative with animal names. I played Harvest Moon, and name my dog Cat and my cat Dog. I even named one of my ducks Pig (laugh out loud.) Any suggestions ? The thing that sucks though is that I have to litter train them. There's too many feces stains on my carpet to count. These kittens never learn.. ugh.

Anyway, Happy Mother's Day! And review maybe ? (:


	4. Four

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Four**

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Touya got up to a knocking on the door. He slowly got out of the small bed and put on a shirt. Walking to the door, he opened it to find a silver-haired boy, around his age, wearing glasses, staring back at him with a smile.

"Good morning," he spoke. "I'm Yue's younger brother, Yukito. He sent me here to look after you."

Touya groaned. He was totally capable of taking care of himself. Hadn't he told Yue that the day he left? Touya looked at Yukito again. He looked clumsy and weak. But he definitely saw the resemblance to Yue.

He sighed and opened the door wider. "Come in,"

Yukito walked it with much comfort, seeing as how it was in fact his brother's room. He started his routine by opening the fridge and taking out a few ingredients. Touya sat back down on the bed.

"I work all around the castle," Yukito said, breaking the silence. "I help the cooks usually. I'm an awesome cook. I can do many household things, I help with repairs around the castle. I also help the Prince with his swordsmanship. I may not look the part, but I am an excellent swordsman. My brother pretty much raised me, since we lost our parents in the last war. So everything I know, I learned from him. Except I'm not much of an introvert as he is."

"I can see that," Touya said quietly. "You talk _a lot_."

"That I do," Yukito said, looking back at Touya with a smile on his face. "We're going to be good friends, I can feel it."

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A week had passed by since Haruka left. Meiling and Emmalyn seemed to be getting along fine without their classmate. No one seemed to miss her. Well, except for Sakura.

She hadn't talked much since that day. Sakura kept to herself, either reading in the library or wandering out to the garden. Sometimes she'd peruse the portraits along the castle walls, most of the time ending up lost in some foreign hallway. But she'd always manage to find her way back.

Without Tomoyo to keep her company, and Haruka to keep her company at the dinner table, she really didn't have anyone else. Kaya was always busy planning out how she'd get with the Prince.

Castle life was lonely. Not even the servants could talk. They were always up and about, dusting things, doing laundry, and scared that if the head master found out about them being idle, they'd be punished.

Sakura made her way down an unfamiliar hall. She headed west, directly opposite of the eastern parts of the castle, where most of the banquets took place, and where most of the rooms were. She wasn't sure exactly what she'd find here, but it wasn't the southern part of the castle. Sakura made sure she never visited the southern part, for the Queen would definitely become furious.

She passed a couple portraits, people she didn't recognize. They were probably the Queen's family, for their name plates indicated _Li_, the prestigious Royal Family name. She then came to a large pair of doors. Curiously, Sakura opened one of them, with much effort, and gazed inside the room.

Books. It was probably a private library. Intrigued, Sakura walked in and started looking at the bookshelves. She loved to read. Her mother had always read her stories before she slept.

Her eyes came to a stop at a familiar binding, and she slowly took it out. "_The Collections of Clow_.." she read and she handled the front cover with care.

"You know of the Clow?"

A deep voice startled her as she turned around to find the source of the voice. There he was, Prince Syaoran, in a black long sleeve, long maroon slacks, and his brown hair as messy as ever. He didn't look much like a Prince in his attire, but his attractiveness was there.

"I, uh, yeah," she stuttered. "I love this book." She blushed a bit, after all, she was caught off guard and in a room she didn't think she was allowed in.

Syaoran put out his hand and Sakura shyly gave him the book. He flipped the pages until he found one particular story. "This story is my favorite."

He handed it back to her, with the book open. She took it. "_The Sleeping Princess_." Sakura couldn't help but let out a laugh. "Isn't that the story where the prince and the princess fall in love, but she tragically dies, and he ends up never loving anyone ever again?"

Syaoran nodded, a little embarrassed. He watched as Sakura flipped through the book, looking for a particular story. "Have you read this one? _The Silver Soldier._ It's the one where a soldier kills the Queen's lover, because he himself is in love with the Queen."

Syaoran nodded with a smile. "Yeah I remember that one, although I do believe there was more to the story than that.."

"Oh my gosh! This one is my _favorite_!" She handed the book to Syaoran excitedly. "Tell me you read this one!"

He glanced at the title. "_The Iris and the Cherry Blossom_.. no I don't think I read this one."

Sakura gasped. "You haven't _read that yet_? Okay I won't spoil it for you, but you must read it! It's one of Clow's best, I think." Sakura giggled. She didn't realize it, but she was having fun, at least more fun than she's had all week.

This didn't go unnoticed to Syaoran either. It was her smile that got him. And then her laugh, it seemed so bitter-sweetly familiar. Then somewhere, somehow, his heart sank. How was it that this emerald-eyed girl laughed and smiled like his precious Ayame? Why were they so damn alike?

"Are you okay?" Sakura said, suddenly interrupting his thoughts.

"Uh, yeah I'm fine."

A few seconds of silence passed. Sakura suddenly furrowed her eyebrows. She first broke the silence. "Why did you ask Haruka to leave?" she said bluntly. "You don't seem like _that_ _much_ of a bad person, but it's been bothering me ever since she left. I've had no one to talk to, and it's been pretty lonely without her.." She looked up to see his face, only to find that he was looking distantly out the window. "I know you don't have to tell me, but it'd be really nice to know, and I don't want to believe you're such a bad guy after all that I've seen of you."

With this he turned to face her. He felt a bit of anger rise from the pit of his stomach. "You think _I'm_ a bad guy?" The girl in front of him nodded quietly, but he could see the conviction in her eyes. She wanted answers. Then again, so did he. And because he was the prince, he'd get them. "How am I a bad guy? I've never once offended you in any way–"

"_Excuse me_," Sakura retorted. "You tried to _touch_ me in the garden! How is that not offensive?" She flailed her arms in disbelief.

"I did _no_ _such_ _thing_," he emphasized with an accusing finger, pointing straight at the emerald-eyed girl. He tried to think back on that night she was talking about. What were they doing? They were in the garden, yes. Was it the first time he saw her up close? Then, his temper rose even more when he realized, "You hit me that night!"

"Only because you tried to touch me first!"

"Only because you looked like Aya–" he paused. Tears started to fall from her eyes. Sakura hated heated arguments. She was a bit too emotional, and whenever no one believed she was telling the truth, she'd start to cry. Sakura tried to hold them back.

He immediately regretted his outburst and unknowingly reached forward to wipe her tears away.

But for some reason, Sakura did not retaliate, nor did she step back. It was something in the Prince's eyes; sadness, loneliness, guilt. Why he would show any signs of those things, Sakura did not know. He had everything. How could he possibly know these feelings?

Syaoran retracted his arm. He apologized. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to scare you that night... it's just..." He started into her eyes once again, somehow captivated. She was crying yet she seemed so strong. How did this girl sway him so easily? She was so alike, yet so different from his precious Ayame.

"Just what?" Sakura managed to speak, although raspy. Neither of them moved.

"It's just... you look a lot like–"

"Prince Syaoran! Are you in here?" A voice came from the hallway as the door to Prince Syaoran's private library opened up. A pair of ruby red eyes peeked into the room as Sakura and Syaoran took a step back from each other. They hadn't realized they were standing so close.

"Oh," Meiling said from the door. "Am I, um, interrupting?"

Sakura, seeming to recover first, shook her head. "No, no," she giggled nervously. "I was just about to leave. Ha ha.." Sakura turned to face Syaoran and gave a small smile. "Read that story, okay?" she reminded him before she walked out of them room, nodding to Meiling.

When she was finally out of ear shot, Meiling moved closer, all the while staring at Syaoran, who hadn't moved. "What was that about?"

Syaoran furrowed his eyebrows. Meiling did all she could to stop herself from hugging her cousin. He looked so mysterious basking in the now setting sun shining through the window. It's rays made the room seem a shade of red; the dust was visible as it floated through the air. He stood there, the man who stole her heart, like a stone, a beautifully carved statue. Even without his royal garments on, he had the air of respect. With one look, make her fall to her knees. That was how strong her love for Syaoran was.

"It was nothing." He replied, his voice barely a whisper.

But Meiling knew better. She had grown up with the man in front of her. He knew how he acted. And as he turned to walk out the door, she saw it. It was in his amber eyes, those eyes which she wished all her life would look at her the same way she looked at him. It was in his eyes that she saw a shine, a glint of hope, a light making its way through his darkness. She hadn't seen that color of amber for a while, not since Ayame was alive.

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Where is he?

Kaya wandered through the halls of the castle, looking for her Prince. She looked in every room she could open, every nook, ever cranny. _Where the hell is he?_ She had waited too long to talk to him, mainly because she couldn't find him. Another reason was Yuka.

Every time they saw each other, be it at the table, down the halls, anywhere, somehow they'd begin a spat. And every time, Kaya ended up winning. _What was with that annoying girl? Does she enjoy pissing me off?_

They were friends, once upon a time. It was back in their hometown. Their families were neighbours. But she remembered how they grew up, and Kaya was always left behind. Yuka had everything; a bigger house, a nicer garden, more servants, better clothes. She would often come over bringing some new trinket her father, a merchant, had discovered overseas. Yuka would never know, but Kaya had always been a bit jealous. That was until they entered school.

Everyone liked Kaya better. She never tried to be arrogant, but she _was_ a sight to look at. During their teenage years, Kaya suddenly experienced a burst of hormones, while Yuka remained flat and skinny. Boys fell on their knees for a chance to woo Kaya, and somehow, Yuka was left behind. Finally, Kaya had something she didn't. Popularity. This new-found skill of hers brought them even closer, for now they were even.

They were around the age of 14 when the Prince came to visit their town. His mother thought it wise to get to know the townspeople, thus she sent Syaoran around to the cities once a year. Kaya was outside her doorstep, crying. That day, Yuka and her had a fight, which left her in tears. A shadow suddenly hovered over her. She looked up to see a boy with unruly hair, clad in green and gold, hands behind his back, staring down at her.

He bent down, Kaya's violet eyes followed every move this handsome stranger made. He reached into his pocket and took out a a folded piece of cloth. He smiled. "I may not know why you're crying, but I've always thought smiles look better on girls." He handed the handkerchief to her. It was then that she smiled the biggest smile she could muster, despite the sadness she felt.

The stranger laughed. "See? You're very cute." He stood up again, leaving her alone to watch as he walked away. His entourage and carriage, following closely behind him, were marked with the symbol of royalty, green and gold dragons crossing each other, flying around a sword. It was then that she knew who he was. Prince Syaoran Li.

In a matter of seconds, he took her heart. How could he capture her so, with just two sentences? It was then that Kaya vowed never to truly smile for anyone except _her_ Prince.

Something compelled Kaya to apologize that day. After Syaoran had spoken to her, she found the courage and humility to seek out Yuka and ask for forgiveness. But what she found was completely opposite.

The Royal Entourage was situated outside Yuka's mansion of a house when Kaya got there. Yuka's family were, after all, the richest in the town, so of course the Royals would visit. Although slightly envious, Kaya remained calm and reminded herself of why she was here. She ran up to the large double doors and spoke to one of the guards. Recognizing her, he let her in.

It didn't take too long for Kaya to find her friend. But to her disappointment, she was smiling. Even after their fight, Yuka wasn't sad like she was. Instead, she sat there laughing with a messy-haired boy who Kaya recognized to be the Prince. It seems they were playing with her pet pekinese dog, which she received a month ago, while their parents were conversing in another room.

Kaya couldn't contain the envy any longer. Without a word, she slipped out of the house and ran straight home. They stopped talking after that day. How could Yuka be so mean? Not once did she try to talk to her after their fight. Not once did Yuka come over and show her something new. And not once did she try to make amends. For the next two years, they hated each other. Their friendship was just a distant past, one Kaya looked upon as a joke.

And this was why they fought. Kaya would never forget the day her best friend left her behind.

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In her room, Akira sat in front of her mirror. Her curtains were drawn where only a few rays of sun made it's way through to the room. She never liked castle life, the life of laziness, as she put it. She hated being waited on. Which was why she dismissed her servants girls. There was nothing they did that she could not do better.

She wore a cute floral sleeveless summer dress, it's hem ending at her knees. It was the new style back where she came from. A little skin, it was perfect to keep one cool.

She looked at herself in the mirror again. She missed her long pink hair, but she had cut and dyed it before entering the castle. And now she looked as boring as ever. Even her new name seemed a bit dull. _Akira?Really?_ Although it did sound kind of similar to her family name. She once again reminded herself of why she was here, instead of back at her estate with her all-knowing master.

She even starting missing him, despite his satire and pessimism.

Akira got up and peeked out her door. Silence. She slowly shut the door behind her as she made her way to the south hallways of the castle. There was a reason the Queen didn't want anyone to venture there, and Akira was sent to find out why, and what Yelan possibly had to hide.

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In a room where two women slept, one an old aging woman, the other hadn't even met her prime. Sounds of dripping from the medical bags hanging at their sides were the only ones that could be heard.

Until a soft raspy voice spoke. It came from the small frail girl, hidden by white curtains.

She whispered.

"_Syaoran.._"

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Author's Note

I hope this chapter explains a lot. It did for me, haha. Has anyone got the hint to who Akira really is?

I'm trying to update more frequently, as you can see. This is the fastest I've ever updated anything! (Pat of the back, good job.)

So it's been a week and I still haven't named my kittens. Good news, bad news. Bad news: turns out my mother is allergic to them, so we have to give them away. Good news: I don't have to name them. Not much off good news, eh? They're both girls by the way. I couldn't stand to have a boy pet. Girls are just so much better ;)

I guess I'll go now. Thanks for all the reads, reviews, subs, favs, etc. I know I'm going to finish this story, since I've already written out chapter summaries and such, and the _high_ (for lack of better word) of receiving reads is very encouraging. Thank you!


	5. Five

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Five**

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"Umph!" A grunt could be heard from out the window.

Sakura winced as the sun shining through her curtains hit her face. Her window was open and she could feel a light breeze on her cheek. She turned her body away from the window.

"Haah!" Another grunt.

"Ahhh! Oh my God!" A few cheers and claps sounded.

Sakura covered her ears. Where was that noise coming from? It was too early for this. She finally managed to prop herself up as she walked towards the window, and the noise. She peered out into the garden to see a group of girls huddled around two men sparring. One she noticed right away as the Prince of Tomoeda. The other was a slightly taller man, with glasses and short silver hair.

The two were evenly matched. Syaoran scowled as the silver-haired boy matched his every blow. But it was no question who the girls below were cheering for. She could hear Meiling's voice everytime Syaoran seemed to get the upper hand, and Kaya's loud cheer everytime it seemed Syaoran would finish the other off.

But something caught Sakura's eye. It was a dark haired boy, standing in the corner of the garden, leaning against the wall by the entrance. His familiar pose reminded Sakura of one of the things she missed the most.

"Touya? ..."

As fast as she could, Sakura found her flats and ran out her door to the garden, not caring she was still in her silk sleeveless nightgown.

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Finally the spar was over. Syaoran, obviously, was the victor. They shook hands.

"Good fight, Little Wolf." Yukito congratulated him. He was a part of the few who were allowed to call Syaoran without any formalities. They were old friends, and Yukito often changed Syaoran's name into other things.

"I feel like you let me win again, Yukito." Syaoran said sternly.

Yukito gave one of his smiles and laughed. A few of the girls, stunned, stared at Yukito. "No, your skills are exceptional. My brother, Yue, taught you well."

"You do forget, your brother taught you as well, maybe even more than I." Syaoran looked around at the scene in front of him. It was then he remembered the stranger, who walked in with Yukito. Syaoran spun around to find him, laid back against the wall and arms crossed. "Who's that?"

"Oh." He motioned for Touya to come over. "This is Touya, a new recruit. My brother's favorite, it seems. He learns quickly."

Syaoran nodded, as did Touya. Syaoran didn't seem to mind that Touya did not bow or give any form of Royal acknowledgment. It reminded him of Sakura..

"Anyway," Yukito said. "We should get going now. There's lots to do, now that I have to take my brother's place as First Captain and General for awhile." He smiled. "I'm amazed how you've finally decided to go back to school, Syao. What caused the change?"

Syaoran thought back to the library, where Sakura mentioned always being bored with nothing to do. "I guess I got bored of the castle." He smirked, hoping maybe Sakura might be happy to go to school.

"Ahh, I see." Yukito bowed. "Well I'll see you later then. Drop by some time, alright?"

Syaoran nodded as he wiped the sweat off his brow. He set his jian back in its sheath and took the towel one of the servants held out for him.

"Good job, Prince Syaoran!" Yuka giggled.

"You're so amazing!" Kaya pushed Yuka back.

All the while, Meiling watched at the back. She did remember her servants telling her the Prince decided he'd go back to school. It was 8:30 in the morning. Classes started at 10:00. Was Syaoran really tired of the loneliness castle life had brought him? He didn't seem to mind it 5 months ago. He was slowly changing, and Meiling felt like she was the only one who was noticing it.

"Touya!"

A shout interrupted her thoughts.

Sakura ran into the garden, bumping into the Syaoran as he was walking out. He grabbed onto her so she wouldn't fall backwards, and she clung to his shirt. Instead of thanking him, she looked frantically around, searching. Her eyes finally rested on Syaoran.

"Where is he?" she cried. "Where's Touya?"

He furrowed his eyebrows. Did she mean the brunette that was with Yukito? How did Sakura know him? A little anger flared up inside of him.

"Touya?" He said with a stern look. "Who's that?"

Her hopes shattered, the sad look obvious on her face. Sakura looked one last time, hoping to find her brother. No luck. "The guy that was just here, in the corner.." Syaoran's expression didn't change. "Nevermind," she said. They stayed in that position for a while, Syaoran grabbing Sakura wrist, her hand clutched to his sweaty t-shirt. Sakura finally let go, and Syaoran loosened his grip.

He walked past her as she let her eyes wander to the floor.

"The carriages leave for school in an hour. You better get ready." He informed her.

"School?" her head popped up as she turned to him. Syaoran couldn't help but warm up when he was her round emerald eyes widen.

"Yes, school. If I decide to go back to school, you all must do the same." He turned to go, but decided to add something. "You might also want to wear something a little less.." He pointed to her nightgown with his eyes. "..revealing."

Sakura blushed as she realized the thin piece of silk separating her naked body from the rest of the world.

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There was a loud chatter everywhere they went. Students whispered and pointed their way, recognizing Prince Syaoran. Why was he here?

The school looked like a small castle, with a ominous gate, complete with a moat. After all, the sons and daughters of the rich attended here.

The school had 73 registered students, all 15-19 years of age. Syaoran and Akira, both being 17, were put with the 3rd Years. Sakura, Emmalyn, Meiling, Yuka, and Kaya were put with the 1st Years. Misa was put in 2nd. Of course, Meiling and Emmalyn already knew everyone, since they attended the prestigious school before they started living at the castle.

As the five girls walked in, the class turned to complete silence. Meiling knew the cause: Sakura. Before Meiling sat at her seat, she looked at the 11 other people in the class and glared. Meiling was Queen Bee at this school. Everyone knew her glare meant her territory, and they shouldn't encroach on it, her territory meaning Sakura.

A chime from the school bell sounded and a woman with long brown hair walked in. "Good morning, students."

"Good morning, Ms. Mizuki." the class chorused in unison.

Kaho Mizuki, their teacher, surveyed her class. It was almost the middle of 3rd semester and three students decide to transfer in? No doubt, this was the doing of the Queen or by influence of the Royal Family. No way could she teach newcomers 2 semesters of work, and then continue with this semester. Kaho sighed, but smiled as she turned to the new students standing in front of her blackboard. "It seems we have new classmates, hmm? Why don't you three introduce yourselves."

Kaya went first. "My name is Kaya. I'm Prince Syaoran's fiancee. Nice to meet you."

"You are _not_," Emmalyn shouted from her seat as she stuck out her tongue.

Kaya put her hands on her hips. "I _will_ be!"

A few boys chuckled. Another whistled. Kaya was used to this. She got a lot of male attention at her old school anyway.

Yuka, mustered what little confidence she had and said, "My name is Yuka. _Do not_ get in my way."

A few eyebrows raised. Meiling shook her head. Those two, Kaya and Yuka, were such big headaches. Finally it was Sakura's turn. The class had their eyes on her from the beginning, wondering how in hell Ayame could come back to life.

Sakura cleared her throat before speaking. "Hi, my name is Sakura Kinomoto. I look forward to meeting you all." She smiled sweetly as the class turned into whispers. Kaho studied Sakura carefully. Yes, Ayame was in her class at the beginning of the semester, but left after the first month due to a sickness. Rumor has it that she passed away. And this girl, Sakura, had an amazing resemblance to her. What a mystery, Kaho smiled to herself. This would be interesting.

"Settle down now." Kaho spoke with authority. "You three have seats wherever you like. We'll being our lessons."

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Tomoyo sat in the second white carriage, decorated with gold and green, alone. She looked out her window. Finally, she'd be going back home, back to her friend Sakura.

Her journey had been a little hectic, what with all the Queen's demands. Tomoyo dare not speak it, but under the kindness and virtuosity of the Queen, there lay a selfish and ugly woman. This is why Tomoyo believed she was chosen to attend to her on this trip, because she knew how the Queen could be in situations of long travel and anxiety.

And the person making the Queen anxious was the man driving her coach, Eriol Hiiragizawa, a direct descendant of Clow, and a Sage renown for his ability to tell the future down to the most accurate details, and his wisdom and knowledge. He made a fuss and refused to sit in the carriage for a week and a half traveling, so he drove the carriage.

Tomoyo admired him. He was headstrong, smart, efficient, and most of all very kind. Not to mention he wasn't that bad to look at either. But her feelings were one-sided, as Sages were not allowed to have love any others, for all that will bring them is sadness and hate, and absolutely nothing was allowed to get in the way of the Sage's job.

"Are you alright in there?" Tomoyo heard him speak from the front.

"Y-yes!" She called back. A slight blush crept on her face, and she was glad they were separated by the carriage wall so he wouldn't see.

"Don't worry, little one," he said again. "I foresaw this trip would be eventless, unfortunately, so we'll be to the castle before you know it."

Tomoyo smiled and laughed to herself. _Little one_? "Thank you," she replied back before you rested her head and decided to take a nap.

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Misa sat behind Tasuki, a handsome brunette with grey eyes and a killer smile. He had introduced himself as soon as Misa sat down.

There was about 20 minutes until lunch when Tasuki threw a piece of paper back to her desk. She was amazed how big her desk was. It reminded her of the one she had in her study. Her chair was also very comfortable too, with a big cushioned seat complete with a matching pillow.

She opened the note Tasuki gave her. Scrawled on it was:

_Hey, wanna grab lunch with me today?_

Misa smiled as she took out a fancy pen provided to her in one of the desk drawers and wrote: 

_Yes, that would be nice._

She gave him back the note. He read it quickly before turning around and smiling hugely at her.

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Yukito didn't know how but for some reason, he couldn't say no to Touya. The pair were currently on their way to the south wing, the reason being obvious.

"You mustn't tell anyone you've been here." Yukito whispered.

"Who have I to tell? The only ones I know here are you and your brother."

Yukito furrowed his brows. That was true. But he would get into so much trouble if the Queen ever found out. Long ago, Yukito found this passage near an empty fireplace whose back wall rotated into the adjacent room. This got him past the numerous guards guarding the only other entrance to the south wing.

They were currently walking down an unlit hallway, which lead to only one room, the room Touya was searching for.

_Mother.._

He could feel her, her aura. It was slightly weak, but it was there. It was like that same morning, where he could somehow feel Sakura. But then again, Yue told him that his mother and sister were fine, and so far, Yue has never gone back on his word.

The reached the end of the hallway. Yukito took the keys hanging on the wall and unlocked the door. Slowly, it opened and the two peered in.

There, on the bed, lay the most beautiful woman Yukito had ever seen. Touya rushed to her side, tears starting to form. He took her hand and kissed it. "Mother," she whispered softly. "I'm sorry I left you."

Nadeshiko lay there, still as a statue, with a slight smile on her face. "She's beautiful." Yukito complimented.

Touya nodded. "My sister received her looks, too." His heart sank at the thought of his little sister.

"Hey, you're not that bad either." Touya looked at Yukito strangely. "I-I don't mean it that way! Geez.." Yukito looked away, a little embarrassed. Touya turned his attention back to his mother. He wiped her forehead of any sweat and kissed her cheek.

"If only you hadn't succumbed to this illness, our family would still be together."

"Illness?" Yukito asked.

"She had been getting weaker for some time, and all of a sudden she just fell into a coma. We don't know how." Yukito nodded. He's heard about sicknesses like that. A particular case was with Ayame, where she just suddenly got weaker and died. But he decided it was best not to tell Touya. "We better leave before someone finds us." Touya said, not wanting to leave. "Thank you so much, Yukito. This means the world to me."

Yukito smiled. "Anything for a friend."

The two nodded at each other before they left the room as it was, and slowly locked the door.

Unbeknownst to both, there sat the other patient of the secret Royal infirmary, Ayame slept behind closed curtains.

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Lunch was an hour and a half. After they ate in the lunch room, which seemed like the dining hall back in the castle, Meiling decided to show Sakura around. She didn't want to leave her alone, for fear someone might ask her about Ayame. Meiling didn't want recollections of her former rival coming back, especially not to Syaoran.

They passed the garden, where Syaoran was resting in a tree. Girls of all ages crowded around just to stare lovingly at him. A few squeals could be heard here and there, chattering, and love confessions too. Syaoran noticed when Meiling and Sakura walked by. They were either heading towards the field and sports arena, or the animal building. Seeing though as Sakura never did one athletic thing since they met, he decided the latter.

He wanted to follow, to see what they were up to, but how in hell would he escape all these girls? He shook his head. They had no shame. _No shame_.

Carefully, he climbed higher, hoping no one would notice. He climbed until he couldn't see the crowd below. Then even more carefully, he jumped from one tree to another. It wasn't hard for him, since he used to do this all the time when he was younger. It's just that he couldn't make any noise, for fear his fans would notice his disappearance.

Finally, he got to the edge of the garden and jumped down, ducking behind a tree trunk. He waited til he was in a clear before he dashed out of the garden, and in the direction to where Sakura was.

He jumped as a pair of red eyes stared at him.

"Yo." Akira said as she waved her hand and walked away.

She was definitely a weird one. He dashed towards to garden exit. When he got to the animal pent, Meiling and Sakura were playing with a couple animals. He heard Meiling explain, "These are where all our animals are kept. Most rulers are supposed to have animals tamed to protect them."

Syaoran peeked into the building. It had a huge window for a ceiling, and a small opening at the top for fresh air and for the birds to fly out when needed. The walls were very tall, and the room was more spacious than his own. He hadn't set foot in here since He last came to this school.

"So how many animals are kept here?" he heard Sakura ask.

"Not too many. They are mostly exotic birds. A few dogs and puppies, and a lion cub."

"A _lion cub_?" Syaoran imagined Sakura's emerald eyes widening and he smiled to himself.

"Yeah. It's, well, it belonged to a student that used to attend here. It was a present to her from Syaoran.." Meiling's voice drifted.

Syaoran remembered. He had given Ayame Cerberus as a birthday present last year. He had grown much since the year went on. Meiling brought Sakura over to a separate room, where they kept Cereberus.

"Are you ready to see him?You don't have to. He doesn't like just anyone."

Sakura nodded. Of course she wanted to see a lion cub! Never in her life had she even seen a lion. Meiling opened the top of the half door, and Sakura looked in. There he was, asleep in the hay. He was almost as long as Sakura was tall. His golden coat shone, and his tail moved from side to side every now and then.

Sakura giggled. "Kero!" she said quietly.

"Kero?" Meiling asked.

"It's his nickname. Cerberus is too long. And he's too cute to have such a long name." She looked back at the lion cub. "Kero!" she shouted this time.

The lion's ears pricked up and he stood, stretching and yawning. He caught sight of Sakura and slowly walked over towards her, and heeled. Meiling stood in awe. This little monster of a lion didn't obey anyone, not even his owner Ayame. So why was Cerberus so calm around Sakura.

Syaoran watched from where he stood, too. He was a bit surprised. Wasn't he the only person Cerberus was kind to? He watched as Sakura carefully opened the bottom half of the door. This was where he had to intervene. What if the lion mauled her beautiful face..

"Sakura, wait!" he said, but it was too late. She had fully opened the door and was now inside, on the ground, petting the lion cub.

Sakura turned from the ground to face him. Kero was already in her lap, enjoying the attention. He purred loudly as Sakura massaged behind his ears. "Look, Syaoran! He likes me!"

With the mention of his name, his eyes softened and he smiled. For the first time in so long, Meiling saw his smile. And it wasn't a forced smile, or a smile just so people would think nothing's wrong, or a smile to please someone else.

He was smiling, unknowingly, for himself and for the green-eyed girl who appeared out of nowhere. A rush of emotions filled Meiling, and tears started to well up in her eyes. Why was it that her feelings were always left out of the picture? Why didn't Syaoran see her obvious love for him? Why was this happening..

"I gotta go to the washroom," Meiling said curtly before rushing out the door. She couldn't be with them. Even if there was nothing going on between Syaoran and Sakura, she knew that the Ayame look-a-like was changing him in ways Meiling couldn't possibly do. But she wanted to be the one to save Syaoran from his despair.

She knew she didn't hate Sakura, because she didn't do anything wrong. But Meiling couldn't help but wish her the same fate as Ayame.

Meiling reached the garden, where Syaoran's confused followers were searching the trees. Emmalyn caught sight of her and her tears.

"Meiling," said her concerned friend. "What's wrong? What happened?"

Meiling wiped her tears and smiled. "It's nothing, Em, I'm fine."

Emmalyn knew it wasn't nothing, but decided to leave the subject alone.

Back at the animal pent, Sakura rolled on the floor, trying to get away as Kero licked her. "Ew! Stop!"

It was ironic, how just a few moments ago, he had asked if Sakura wanted Kero as her own pet. Sakura was more than willing to have Kero. How he managed to give her the gift he had given Ayame, he didn't know. Of course, he felt guilt. What would Ayame do if she found out he'd given another girl a gift he gave her?

"Can I bring him back to the castle?" Sakura asked, the cub in her arms. Kero was too heavy for her to lift. Instead he stood on his hind legs while his upper body and limbs rested in Sakura's arms. He purred.

How could Syaoran say no to such an adorable sight? He nodded just as the end-of-lunch bell chimed. "We should head back to class."

Sakura nodded as she put Kero down and patted his head. "I'll be back later. Promise." The two walked out of the building, smiling.

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Akira was put into Syaoran's class, 3rd Year. She sighed as she looked out the window. She was bored as hell. Not only did she know all of this stuff, but she probably had studied past it. Her master taught her all she needed to know to do her job.

The class received their tests which they took this morning. To everyone's surprise, only 2 people received a perfect 100% mark on their tests: Syaoran and Akira. It was clearly ironic how it was their first day of classes yet they beat everyone else.

Syaoran was even more suspicious now. How could this girl get perfect on this test? It was a hard test, even for Syaoran. Even more confusing was her lack of interest in him. He didn't want to seem arrogant, but he was the handsome Prince Syaoran. What was up with this girl, anyway?

Mr. Terada, their teacher, applauded them and lectured the rest of the class at how sad that was, that two transferees beat out everyone else and how would they rule as the next leaders of the land if they couldn't even pass a test. Akira didn't bother listening. Instead, she kept her eyes fixed outside and her thoughts scattered. Just how was she to get to the south wing when there were so many people guarding it?

She had scoured the area but couldn't find another entrance to the south wing. Not even windows were placed there. Whatever Yelan wanted to hide was indeed well hidden, which peaked Akira's curiosity even more.

She turned her attention back to class, where she caught a few boys staring at her. _Heh, stare all you want. I can kick you asses in a matter of seconds._ She glared devilishly back at them, smiled her evil smile and licked her lips. They turned away, nervously blushing.

Just then, out the window, something caught her eye. It was a blonde girl and a brunette boy, making out under a tree. Akira squinted more, only to realize she knew the blonde haired girl.

Well this was a juicy piece of gossip. Misa, who was supposed to be trying to win Syaoran over, was making out with another boy. Hmm, interesting.

But what Akira failed to notice was Misa's arms, struggling against Tasuki's chest, trying to push the much stronger boy away.

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Yukito and Touya sat at the edge of one of then benches, resting from their training. "You're an amazing fighter! You par my every blow. No wonder Yue likes you so much."

Touya wasn't used to being praised, so he smiled humbly as he took another gulp of water.

"I bet you could go up against Syao. We should try it sometime."

Touya scoffed. He didn't like the kid. There was something about his sullen attitude that made him seem cocky. Sure, okay, Touya admitted he wasn't that bad of a fighter. But the way he talked was so arrogant. Touya felt the need to punch the brat in his pretty little face and put him in his place.

"Yeah," Touya liked the idea of being able to beat the little Prince up. "Sounds good."

Yukito raised his eyebrow, but said nothing. He focused instead on the other people training. There was a question Yukito wanted to ask Touya, but he wasn't sure of his reaction. Well what had he to lose? "Hey Touya, how did you mother fall ill anyway?"

Touya glared hard out at the scene in front of him. Clashes of swords and the banging of metal could be heard. But all that he could hear was his father's voice, when he was younger, explaining what had happened.

It was after the birth of his sister, Nadeshiko fell into a deep depression. She cried every day and every night, and one day Touya came in to comfort her. He crept into her room and when the silver-haired woman caught sight of her only son, she held him tight and sobbed even harder, so much that Touya began to cry.

What had made his mother so sad? Tiny Sakura lay in her crib beside the bed, sound asleep, unaware of the noises around her. That night Touya asked his father, Fujitaka, why his mother was so sad. He remembered the pained expression on his father's face as he told him, _"You see, Touya, ..we have lost something. Something just as irreplaceable and precious and you and your sister.. and your mother is having a hard time dealing with it.._" He never asked what it was. What could be just as special as himself, or Sakura?

The next week, they had to move. It was to the smaller one room hut they had. Touya wondered why, they had the resources to stay at their villa. Why must they move so far from the city? But he never had time to ask, for his father left to lend his services to the Royal Army as its medical officer. Touya, only 3, watched as his father walked away broken-hearted, leaving his sick wife, his newborn daughter, and his only son behind.

He came back every month to visit for a week. And within that week, Nadeshiko looked and felt a little better. He always brought home something for his children, and spent every waking moment and every night beside his wife. It was a terrible thing to say good bye at the end of that week, but Fujitaka always returned..

At the age of 10, Touya started doing all the household chores, the finances, and the cooking. The money received from his father's payroll in the army, Touya would save as much as he could. He was a smart kid, and he knew the recession would be coming soon, right after the wars were won. Since he did not go to school, Nadeshiko, although drained of much of her vitality, taught her children to read and write, and also things kids wouldn't learn in school, like life skills. No matter how sad she was, Nadeshiko wouldn't take her problems out on her children. They grew up knowledgeable and wise.

But the days came when she seemed to stay in her bed more often than usual. It started the week their father didn't come. Three months passed and Touya knew, his father wouldn't ever come back.

All the sadness and depression seemed to flood back to Nadeshiko. One day, she wouldn't wake up, no matter how hard Touya tried. He fed her all the medicine he could find, but nothing worked. If only his father were here, he'd cure her.

But it was too late. He knew his father would never come back. And he knew they needed their mother.

Yukito moved around in his seat. Why was Touya telling him all this? It was pretty much his life story, pretty much who he was and why. But there was something about Yukito, even though they had just met, that made Touya trust him. It was the same quality Touya found in Yue. No doubt they were brothers.

"There was a time when my brother fell ill. It was the worst feeling in my life, I felt so lost.. and so helpless." Yukito might as well share his stories, too. After all, this was one he never told anyone. It portrayed his brother at his weakest, something he couldn't just tell anyone. "Yue couldn't moved, even. His skin grew pale and sweaty at times, and he would sleep there the whole day.

"But there was this one man who saved him. He took the leaves of some beautiful purple flower, and mashed them up into a teapot. When I gave the tea to Yue, he started looking less pale. Later that day he awoke! I was so amazed. The Queen had sent so many physicians to cure him, but none could except this kind man with brown hair and glasses."

Touya snapped his head towards his friend. "Did he wear a silver ring around his neck?"

"Yes."

"Did he have brown eyes, too?"

"Yes, I think so."

"Did he tell corny jokes and laugh at them.."

"I thought his jokes were hilarious! Although, not many people understood them.."

Touya sat back, happiness filling his heart. "That was my father.."

Yukito's eyes widened. "Your father? Fujitaka? I should have known. He told me he had a son around my age, and that we'd be perfect companions. Who would have guessed?" Yukito laughed.

Touya smiled at the thought of his father helping the sick. But it was so ironic that while he was out helping strangers, his own wife was succumbing to an unknown illness. "Hey Yukito."

"Hmm?"

"Did my father cure everyone with that flower?"

Yukito thought about it. He had seen Fujitaka's room once. The shelves were lines with books and jars of herbs. But one thing that did catch his eye were the vials of purple liquid, just like the tea he gave his brother. "Yes I would think so." And then it hit Yukito, Touya's idea. You're planning to find that flower, aren't you?"

A smile crept on Touya's face as he nodded. "You have to tell me what it looked like."

Yukito frowned. "It's not an easy flower to get, you know. It's the fabled _Cherry Iris_, only found in Clow's Garden. Your father told me."

"Then what am I sitting here for?" Touya exclaimed. A way to resuscitate his mother, it was at his fingertips. "I'm leaving today."

Yukito grabbed Touya's arm. "You don't even know where Clow's Garden is!"

Touya snatched his arm away. "I have a clue. I've read about it in one of Clow's books. You can't tell me I cant try. I _need_ to try. This is my mother, for Clow's sake."

Defeated, Yukito sighed. "I'm coming with you."

"You need to look after the guard."

"I'll get someone else to do it. You can't go alone."

Touya smiled. "Thanks, Yukito."

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Author's Note:

Aaaaaaaaand DONE ! Yay finally. It took a little longer than it was supposed to, but hey it's out. My longest chapter yet. There were so many things I shouldn't have added, yet I did because.. well just because haha.

May went by so fast. I cannot believe it's June in a week. A friend and I were supposed to go to Vegas for a week at the beginning of June, but because I'm 19 and she's 20, there's not much we can do, if you know what I mean wink* wink*.

Anyway, thanks for reading (: It means a lot.


	6. Six

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Six**

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Saturday morning. Sakura awoke with a knock on her door. She looked out her window. The sun was barely up. Who could it be at such an early time in the morning? She slowly got out of her bed, bringing the covers with her.

"Who is it?" she called out.

"It's me, Sakura." A familiar voice called out.

Sakura's eyes widened as she recognized the shy voice of Haruka. She opened the door to be greeted by her silver-haired friend's brown eyes. "Haruka!" she squealed as she wrapped her hands around her. Blushing, Haruka smiled and returned the embrace. "Come in, come in." Sakura ushered Haruka into her room and quietly shut the door. Sitting on the bed, Sakura smiled. "Sorry, I should dress in something more befitting.."

"No, it's fine. I have to leave soon anyway." Haruka's eyes trailed across the room, noticing the large wardrobe, the white curtains, even the little lion plush on the other side of the bed. "How have you been holding up?"

Sakura told her about the other girls, especially Yuka and Kaya who've been fighting a lot lately. She told her about the first day of school, which was yesterday, and how she'd already been given a ton of homework. She was able to understand most of it since her mother and brother had home-schooled her, but a new concept of Calculus remained a mystery and she'd been having trouble since she took a try at it when she got home yesterday. Sakura sighed. "And Tomoyo's been gone for a while too. She's supposed to be back in a day or two, but that's too long and I'm always alone."

"What about Prince Syaoran?"

Sakura blushed at the mention of the prince who she once thought was mean and selfish. "Well, he has been a little nice to me, I guess." She pointed at the item Haruka thought was a toy. "That's Kero. Syaoran gave him to me yesterday at school. He is the most behaved lion cub ever!" She giggled in excitement.

Haruka pondered quietly. Was she talking about Cerberus? Why would the Prince give away something that belonged to Ayame? Was he finally moving on? She studied Sakura. Her eyes seemed a little lighter than before. Something about her mentioning Syaoran gave her emerald eyes a sparkle. Did anyone else notice?

"Oh!" Sakura said aloud. "Why weren't you at school? I thought you attended there with Meiling and Emmalyn."

Haruka blushed for the second time and turned away. "I'm um, busy with arrangements and things."

"For what?"

Haruka reached into her bag and took out a white envelope bordered with lace. "This is for you."

Sakura reached out, opened the pretty envelope, and read the beautifully handwritten words:

_Sakura Kinomoto_

_We, Keiichi Muto & Haruka Tanaka, cordially invite you to witness our wedding on March 27, at the Muto estate._

_The theme colors are white and silver. You are welcome to bring a guest. Please confirm your attendance as soon as possible. We hope that you are able to share this important day with us, and we look forward to seeing you there._

Sakura's jaw dropped. "You're getting _married_?" Haruka nodded shyly. "But you didn't tell me.. this is so surprising!"

"Will you come?"

"Of course I will!" Sakura hugged her friend. "I wouldn't miss it for the world." Sakura couldn't stop smiling, and Haruka fell for its contagiousness. "You're getting married!" She still couldn't grasp the fact that Haruka was betrothed just a week after getting banished from the castle.

"You know, Sakura, Syaoran is a good person."

"I know, I know, you told me."

"The reason he made me leave was because I asked him to."

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Why would you do that?"

Haruka thought back to the night she had accidentally run into the Prince in the library.

She was starting to get tired. Emmalyn had said her room was somewhere around here, but Haruka just couldn't find it. Why did she have to be so bad at directions?

A light caught her eye. There was a slightly open door ahead. Haruka peeked in to see who it was, only to realize it was Prince Syaoran, clad in green, black, and gold. Haruka doubted she'd ever get this close and alone to the Prince, so she pushed her shyness away and took a step of courage.

"Um, excuse me, Prince Syaoran?" she said lightly, opening the door more. Syaoran turned around. He was seated at the desk in his private library, working on a few things. When he saw Haruka, an old classmate, he smiled.

"Come in, Haruka. What do you need?" He got off his chair, turned it around, and beckoned her to sit down. She obeyed.

"I need.. well.. a favor." Her eyes gazed at the floor.

"And what is this favor?"

Haruka took a deep breath before continuing. She and Syaoran had been classmates since they started in primary school. They took the same classes, knew the same people, and on occasion hung out a few times. She knew how kind Syaoran was, how wise he could be. Haruka was hoping that none of these traits left him when Ayame died.

"My parents wanted me to come here, to be a part of this whole.. um," she started, not knowing what to call the situation Syaoran was in, how his mother was forcing him to marry women she'd picked. "I-it's not that I don't like you," she waved his hands in embarrassment, a blush creeping onto her cheeks. "Just not in that way.." Syaoran nodded his head in agreement. "So anyway, they forced me to be here, when I didn't want to. You see, I have someone that I like.. no, more like _love_."

"And you're obviously giving him the wrong idea by being here." Syaoran continued. She nodded. Keiichi was a family friend who visited every other week. She never brought up the idea to her parents because she'd always been to afraid of what they'd say. "And you don't want to leave the castle because your parents will get mad, right?"

She nodded again, smiling at how perceptive Syaoran was, and how he didn't lose his talent to read people. "Then Iill expel you." He cleared his throat. "From here on, I banish you from the castle. Pack your belongings and leave by morning.. or whenever you feel like it." He winked and smiled.

Haruka faced the Prince in surprise, her eyes starting to well up in tears. "Really?"

"Yeah, I mean, it only makes sense. I know what it feels like to be apart from the one you love.." His eyes trailed to the window, searching for something. Haruka's heart dropped. "And anyway," he said breaking the silence. "You're an old friend. I've known you too long for you to be anything but honest and truthful." She smiled at this. Being complimented by the Prince felt, well, great.

"I'll walk you back to your room, you probably don't know where you are." The two shared a laugh before heading back.

Sakura still couldn't believe it. How could the current Syaoran do something so.. kind? "You see, Sakura? Syaoran has always been a good person."

"Why are you trying to make me like him so much?"

Haruka didn't really know. Maybe because she wanted Syaoran to be happy, and she thought Sakura might do it, well, with the fact that her and Ayame are identical. Haruka just shrugged her shoulders and smiled. "It looks like you might have taken a liking to him already."

Sakura blushed. "No!" she protested. "It's just that he gave me Kero, and I'm grateful to him." She reached over the bed and petted Kero softly, making him purr. Just then, a servant girl came in, reminding Sakura that it was time to get up and dressed for breakfast.

"I should leave," Haruka said. "I'd love to stay but I have an appointment with the dressmaker.."

"Ooooooh!" Sakura squealed. "I'm so excited!" The two hugged and said their goodbyes, promising to see each other soon. Sakura then went to her bathroom to get ready for the day ahead of her.

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Touya woke up anxious. Yukito couldn't leave until Yue came back, since there wasn't anyone that was eligible to lead the Royal Guard. But Touya promised that Yukito would come along. Heck, he might even come in handy, what with all his training, and not to mention excellent cooking skills. They even rivaled his own.

Two days until Yue came back. Two days until they could leave. Would his mother last? She had seemed a little better than when he last saw her. He couldn't contain his distress any longer. Touya pulled on a shirt, washed his face, and headed out the door towards the south wing.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Yelan couldn't stand Eriol. She always lost her calm around him. Maybe it was his ability to predict the future, or maybe it was because he seemed to always know everything. Maybe she was scared, afraid that he knew her deepest darkest secrets.

"Your Highness,"

Her mind turned back to the events of the present. She was seated beside Yue in the first carriage of the Royal entourage. He was doing one of his numerous check ups and every time he checked up on her she seemed more on edge than the last visit.

"Are you alright, my Queen?" he asked again, aware she didn't hear the first time.

Yelan nodded. "I'll be better when I see my son." A few minutes passed in silence until she suddenly spoke. "Do you think he can read minds?"

Yue cocked an eyebrow. "You mean Eriol?" He watched curiously as the Queen slowly opened the back curtain and peeked out. There, leading the second carriage, was the all-knowing Eriol, direct descendant of Clow himself. Of course, her peeping did not go unnoticed to him and he waved back at her, just as she shrugged away and hid herself. "I swear on it, he can read minds!"

"You're going crazy.." Yue replied.

She scowled and crossed her arms. "I can behead you for that."

Yue cracked a smile. She always got this nervous when she was around the dark-haired magician. "You didn't have to come on this trip. I could have handled this well on my own, you know."

"It's courtesy." Yelan replied grudgingly. "It's not like I wanted to come either. If I had it my way, he wouldn't even have to be apart of the Royal Crowning. Why couldn't he just be there for the day Syaoran turns 18? Why does he have to stick around two months before? I'm the Queen, I should get my way!"

"This new attitude of yours isn't very becoming." the wise Yue scolded. "You know his job is to watch over the Prince to see if he is fit enough to rule. One day just isn't enough for that."

"I know, I know. But you think, just because he's all-knowing, that he can just tell by looking at my son, or reading the stars or something magic-like." She peeked back through the curtain again. "He's so young, it gives me the creeps!"

"He is my brother's age," Yue commented. "And you need to stop stealing looks at him. He might become suspicious."

Yelan turned around and scowled again. "I could have you beheaded for that, too."

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Emmalyn and Meiling were sitting at the breakfast table, alone. They always woke up early and ate together. Emmalyn was wearing a cute spring dress, her hair tied in a loose bun. Meiling, on the other hand, wore a lace top with a knee-length skirt, her raven-colored hair fell onto her shoulders.

"What's up?" Emmalyn asked. "You've seemed so gloomy since yesterday."

Meiling didn't reply. She didn't want to share her feelings. It was heartbreaking. She sighed.

"There was this one time," Emmalyn started. "Where my little brother thought he'd play a joke on my second oldest sister. One night, while she was sleeping, he snuck into her room with a pair of scissors and cut two inches off of her hair! When my mom saw her in the morning, she freaked out! She woke up the whole house yelling at my sister for having sex! It was hilarious! She cried, not knowing who had cut her hair, claiming she was a virgin. Most memorable morning I've ever had."

Meiling remembered this specific custom of Emmalyn's family. The girls would cut their hair after they had lost their virginity specifically after marriage, signifying the loss of something important and precious, and also signifying this new step, or change. Meiling smiled.

"My brother had to explain to my mother that he had cut her hair. It was a messy situation, I tell you. A very funny one, but very very messy." Meiling finally let out a laugh. "There we go," Emmalyn smiled. "There's that pretty smile of yours."

Meiling was glad for Emmalyn. She had always made her smile in school. Emmalyn was the reason Meiling had made it through the Ayame stage. Her jokes and her forwardness were always welcome, especially since her stories were always heart-warming, or funny in a sense.

"Thanks, Em," Meiling said. "I needed a laugh."

Emmalyn took a bite from her food. "You know," she said, chewing on the bit of jammed toast in her mouth. "You haven't lost until he gets married."

Meiling frowned. "It's not about that!"

Emmalyn laughed. "When is it _never_ about that? And by _that _I mean _Syaoran_, Come on, you think I don't know you? Whenever you're glum, it's always about the Prince."

Meiling was silent for a bit. "I think he likes her."

"Sakura?"

Meiling nodded. "I caught them in the library talking, my God, Em, they were so close to each other!" Meiling was squeezing Emmalyn's hand. "And he gave her Ayame's Cerberus! It was her birthday present from last year! How could he just give that away? And he smiled at her like he smiled at Ayame. It was so heartbreaking I wanted to cry! Why can't he smile at me like that? Am I not pretty enough? Does he not like my personality?" Angry tears started to form. Emmalyn took a napkin and handed to her. Embarrassed, Meiling wiped her tears. "I'm sorry,"

"No need to apologize," Emmalyn comforted her. "These are your feelings. Let them out. You feel like everything is one-sided."

"I _know_ my feelings are one-sided!" Meiling confessed. "I always knew he'd never love me the way he did Ayame. But I can't help but wish that there will be hope for me."

"Speak of the devil.." Emmalyn said under her breath as Sakura walked into the dining room.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Misa didn't realize she was so naive. She was in her room, looking at her reflection in the mirror. She carefully combed her blonde hair, and wiped a tear from her blue eyes. She wanted to go home.

She missed her family. From her loving parents down to her annoying little brothers. She missed the warmth of her country, waking up to the familiar sounds of the birds whistling and the wind blowing through the trees. She heard none of that here, they were surrounded by stone walls.

Most of all, she missed knowing she was safe. Again, she cursed her stupidity. Misa found it so easy to make friends in her country. But here it was different. And she learned that yesterday, when all Tasuki wanted to do was get under her skirt. Misa was horrified. Angry tears formed as she recalled that moment, where she couldn't move against his strong build. He had held her up against a tree, his mouth drowning her cries for help. It was not until she found his weak spot, kicking him right between the legs, did he loosen his grip, giving Misa a chance to flee.

She stayed in the medical room the rest of the day, hiding under the white bedsheets feigning fatigue. She told no one about what had happened. As soon as they got back to the castle, she went straight to her room and had a servant bring her dinner up. She hadn't spoken to anyone since.

Misa wasn't going to have breakfast. She didn't want to leave the safety of her room, even though it wasn't really _hers_. It was the most safe she'd ever been since she arrived in this foreign country. Now she really missed home.

A knock on the door startled her. She checked her appearance, just in case, and walked calmly to the door. It was Akira.

"Good morning, neighbour," Akira said casually. "Just checking up on you. You seemed to have a hard time sleeping last night."

"Pardon me?" Misa asked, not understanding.

"I'm in the room next to yours." Akira pointed out. "You left your window open, and I could hear you talking aloud in your sleeping. You even screamed, _get off of me!_ I was wondering if you were okay."

Misa looked to the ground, furrowing her eyebrows. She wanted to cry and let it out, but she also didn't want to cause any trouble.

"I saw you yesterday, with some boy in the courtyard."

Misa snapped her head up and covered her mouth.

Akira smiled. "Don't worry, I didn't say anything to anyone. I won't say anything, actually, it's none of my business. But you know, by the things you said in your sleep last night.. I don't think you're okay with what happened."

Now Misa really wanted to cry. But she did her best not to. She only nodded and smiled. "I'll be able to handle it. Thanks, Akira, it means a lot to me that you're worried."

"No problem, if you need someone to talk to, I'm here. This may be a totally different place for you, but I assure you that you have friends here."

Misa smiled warmly. This reminded her of when Pierre had dropped her suitcase down the stairs, and Sakura and her friend ran over to see if someone was hurt.

Akira excused herself and Misa closed her door once again. Alone in the safety of her room. She was dreading Monday already.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

"Good morning," Sakura said cheerfully. She was carrying a few textbooks and notepads in her hand. She walked to the table and grabbed a piece of bread.

"Good morning," Emmalyn said back. Meiling tried her best to smile. "Studying?" Emmalyn asked.

"Yeah. I'm not good at math." Sakura admitted. "I was home-schooled."

"Ahh," Emmalyn nodded her head while Meiling kept hers down, not able to meet Sakura's emerald eyes. "Well if you need any help, ask us. I'm sure we might be able too help, although I'm not so good with math either." The two girls laughed. Meiling sunk lower into her chair.

"Well I'll see you around," Sakura waved goodbye.

"See you." Emmalyn looked at Meiling's slouchy figure. "Sit up, you're a lady."

Meiling did as she was told. "I can't look at her. It's like Ayame all over again."

Emmalyn put a comforting arm around her friend. This was the reason why she never fell in love. It was too much work for the sake of one person. She was too young to get into that stuff. She felt sorry for Syaoran, already having to get married at 18. What a joke. Secretly, Emmalyn wished she wouldn't win even though she was the perfect candidate.

Her father was part of the Royal Court and served on the High Council. He helped in the strategical aspects of war, and also the strategics in building cities. Emmalyn's life was abundant in riches. Not to mention Emmalyn was a black-haired beauty with beautiful tanned skin and a perfect complexion. She was one of the top students and spoke 5 other languages. She was a gymnast and a dancer, and a very good entertainer.

The perfect candidate. That's what the Queen told her. But Emmalyn didn't want to marry, not that marrying the Prince wasn't a good thing, although she'd have to attend boring parties, be free for his every beck and call, and bear him a _bajillion_ children so he'd at least have one heir . She didn't want to be tied down at such a spirited age. She didn't want her happiness to rely on someone else.

It killed her to see Meiling all depressed about this. She was the best example of how not to live your life; your happiness being based on someone else. Emmalyn was independent. It was all she'd ever need; herself. Maybe a few friends, but she definitely did not need a boy in her life.

"Let's finish up breakfast," Emmalyn suggested. "and go for a walk maybe? I think you could use some fresh air."

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Syaoran sat upright on his bed, looking over a few documents. He had took the applications and enrollment list for the Royal Guard from Yue's office. Since Yue wasn't here, it had been even easier to take them without anyone noticing. Although if someone did notice, it wasn't that hard for the Prince to silence them.

"Touya.. Touya.." he whispered, flipping through the pages of paperwork. "Why can't I find him? It's like he doesn't exist!" He reached the end of the file and no sign of a Touya anywhere. Yukito did say he was a _new_recruit. "Why aren't his files in the registry?"

Syaoran was irritated. How did Sakura know this Touya person? Was he a family member? Was he a former lover? Even worse, was he her _current_ lover? Syaoran slapped his face with his palm. He wasn't jealous. How could he be? Over a recruit that didn't exist!

He groaned. Why was he getting so worked up over Sakura anyway? Why did he feel like he had to know everything about her? He couldn't contain his jealousy when she ignored him the morning before, looking for another man. Syaoran cursed. What was so special about Sakura anyway? There wasn't anything too great about her appearance, nor her personality..

But the way Sakura looked for him, the way she yearned to know where he was, it made his heart ache. Who was Touya? He was going to find out if it was the last thing he did.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Sakura lay on a blanket under the cherry blossom tree in the morning sun, her books in a mess around her. She couldn't concentrate. Maybe it was because of Haruka's sudden announcement of marriage. Maybe it was because this calculus stuff was a bit too confusing. Or maybe because her mind often wandered off to a certain someone..

No. She had to concentrate. How could she be thinking of Syaoran at a time like this? She sighed and turned back to her text book. "I bet Syaoran understands this," she said aloud. Suddenly aware of what she spoke, she covered her mouth, stood up, and looked to see if anyone heard her. She was alone in the garden. A soft breeze moved her long brown hair. She left her hair down today, seeing as they've always been in braids.

Relieved, she started walking towards the cherry blossom tree. Her white dress moved with the wind as its gusts grew a little stronger. She had to hold it down to keep it from flying up and showing her underwear. Blushing, she looked around to see if anyone was watching her. How she had come to be so paranoid, she didn't know. But this time, her eyes met a familiar pair of brown orbs at the garden entrance and a flood of emotions came to her like never before.

The two stared at each other for a bit. Sakura found herself speechless as her brother stood at the garden entrance. Touya felt the same. To see his little sister after all this time, finally having proof that she was alive and well, he felt relived and overly happy. Before Sakura knew it, she was running towards the tall man. Tears came out of nowhere as she cried, "Touya!"

His familiar smile spread across his face as she ran into his arms. "Sakura," he said softly as he hugged her tightly and swung her frail body in the air. His scent reminded her of home and she cried even more, letting her guard down, as he let her gently onto the ground.

"What are you doing here?" she asked as she took his hands in her own and squeezed them.

"We can't talk here. It's not safe. No one can find out about us right now." Touya released his hands from her grip and gave her another hug. "Tell me what room you're in and I'll come find you."

"I'm in the last of the rooms at the most eastern part of the castle, third floor."

Touya kissed his sister on the cheek. "I will come find you, I promise. I have to go, be safe."

Tears slipped down her cheeks. "I've missed you so much, you and mother."

"I've missed you too. And mother is safe at the moment. You have nothing to worry about. We'll talk when we can. I must go." He gave her one last hug before he ran back into the castle.

From a third floor window, the prince looked out infuriated. He ran through the hallways, down the nearest staircase, heading for the garden entrance, hopefully in time to catch this _Touya_ he saw from his bedroom window. His face was red with anger (or jealousy) from the moment he saw Sakura leap into his arms. It grew even more red when the slick bastard _kissed_ her. How dare he kiss her!

He ran top speed, cussing, shouting at random servants to move out of his way. Finally, he reached his destination. He looked out into the garden. But no one was there. He was puzzled for a second time that day, and it wasn't even noon. He let out a cry of frustration as he marched back inside straight for the eastern dorms, specifically Sakura's.

He was walking up the last flight of stairs when Meiling and Emmalyn walked down the staircase. "Good morning, your highness," Emmalyn said. "You look like you're in a rush."

Syaoran stopped to take a breather. He'd been running the whole way, thinking of what he'd say to Sakura when he saw her, that he forgot to breathe. "Have you seen Sakura?"

Emmalyn gave a sad look at Meiling, who was already looking down. "Um, yeah, she came up the hallway a few minutes ago with her books. I think she went to her room."

"Which one is hers?" he asked, maybe a bit rudely.

"The furthest one to your right, just another flight of stairs up. Is something wrong?"

Sensing the anger in Emmalyn's voice, he eased up on the demanding tone. "Nothing, I just need to talk to her. I'm sorry for this, it's just been a horrible morning. I can't seem to get anything to make sense."

"Really?" Emmalyn crossed her arms. "Well you should be a little more empathetic to those around you, instead of just saying and asking things without the least bit of respect, your _highness._"

Syaoran disregarded her condescending tone. He realized he was being quite rude. He nodded and returned to the stairs.

"Let's go Meiling," Emmalyn said as they started downstairs.

He finally got to the third floor. He was a little out of breath but he continued on anyway. Why was her room so far? He looked down the right side of the hallway to where her room would be. He reached the last door, took a deep breath, and knocked.

"Who is it?" a voice called from inside.

"It's Syaoran," he said back. He heard a bit of shuffling before the door opened. Emerald eyes peeked out from behind the door.

"Oh my goodness, it _is_ you!" she said, embarrassed. "What are you doing here?"

"I need to talk to you. Can I come in?"

"I guess so," She opened the door for him to enter. Kero was on the rug with a ball in his paws. "I was just playing with Kero. He just woke up."

Syaoran tried to remain focused on the task at hand, he needed to find out who Touya really was and why he was so close to her. But the way she smiled at the little golden tiger distracted him, until she looked at him and asked, "So what did you want to talk about?"

He cursed himself inwardly at his weakness and cleared his throat. "Earlier you were outside in the garden weren't you?"

Sakura froze. Did he see Touya? She managed to let a "mhmm" slip through her mouth as she panicked inside.

"I saw someone run up to you, and, um, hug you.." Syaoran's cheeks started to blush. This wasn't how it was supposed to go! He was supposed to interrogate her and then punish her for not telling him. So why was he being all embarrassed about this? "I want to know.. who he was."

Sakura's heart was beating fast. What was she going to say? She was never good at lying. "No.. there was no one.."

Like a flash, Syaoran had her pinned to the wall. He held the palms of her hands in his at the side of her face, their noses nearly centimeters away. "He kissed you! Are you saying I'm a liar?"

She shook her head, trying to loosen his grasp, but it was no use. He was too strong. Kero cried as he tried scratching Syaoran's leg, but his claws couldn't get past the strong fabric of his royal garments. Sakura's face turned into a glare as angry tears ran down her cheeks. Syaoran realized what he was doing. Sakura was shaking, although she tried not to show it. He had scared her.

Slowly, he let her go. Her hands fell to her sides as she kept staring at him with her green eyes. Syaoran felt so ashamed for making this beautiful girl cry. He took her face in his palms and wiped away her tears. "I'm sorry," he said.

What he did next, he couldn't explain why. The next second he found himself pressing his lips onto hers.

He pulled away quickly and covered his mouth. Sakura did the same. Kero looked up at the two and tilted his head to the right.

"I'm so sorry," Syaoran said before he scrambled out of her room.

Sakura stood there, hands over her mouth, unable to comprehend what had just happened.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Akira walked around the entrance to the south wing. Once again she found it difficult to find a way in without anyone seeing her. She was about to give up when a familiar face ducked into a hallway almost right before the main entrance to the south wing. She saw him during the spar between the Prince and some silver-haired glasses boy.

_Suspicious,_ she thought before deciding to see what he was doing. She followed him into a dark room. She could barely see anything. Before she knew it, she was held in a head lock, her legs immobile, and her chest heavily breathing.

"Who are you?" he whispered harshly. "Why are you following me?"

"I'm one of the Prince's women. What are you doing so close to the south wing?"

He let her go. "That is none of your business. Go back to your room. You have no business here."

"I'm afraid I do, because if I recall, _no one_ is allowed anywhere near the south wing."

"Then why are you here?" Touya asked.

"Why are you _here_?" Akira raised her eyebrow. Silence filled the room. Akira took this time to look at the other in the room. A faint ray of light shone through the half open door onto his handsome face. His eyes were dark and cold. He towered over her lean frame easily, and he showed no sign of weakness. Akira was liking what she was seeing. "I won't tell if you won't tell."

"What do you want?" Touya asked, irritated.

"I want to get into the south wing."

"Why?"

"There's something I have to confirm." She wouldn't go into the details, but if this person knew a way in, she'd take her chances.

Touya hesitated. "What do I get in return?" he bargained.

"I told you. I won't tell if you don't."

Touya thought about it. What harm could she do? Besides, how could he check up on his mother if this red-headed girl was watching his every move? Touya finally nodded. "You won't tell anyone, understand?"

"I understand. By the way, I'm Naruku. But people in the castle call me Akira."

He shook his head. "Touya. Not interested. Stay out of my business."

Amused, Naruku smirked. "We're going to get along nicely.."

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Thank you so much for waiting so long! Finally done the eighth chapter of this story. Been so busy, with work and life and .. haha I have no life.

Is anyone else devastated that Harry Potter is over ? Haha, like half the world. Then again, Harry Potter was over for me the day I finished the last book. The movies didn't do much for me, other than introduce me to Rupert Grint 3

Anyway, enjoy this chapter. I promise to update more frequently. (:


	7. Seven

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Seven**

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_The Collections of Clow: The Sleeping Princess_

_A long time ago, amidst famine and chaos, there existed a small kingdom. It's rulers were loved by all under its reign. The King was a wise man, just and fair. Although times were hard, he did his best for everyone to be happy. He made it his purpose in protect his kingdom._

_One night, word came from a bordering village that they were being attacked by a group of bandits. Immediately, the King woke his finest men and off they rode, the sun not even shining, to rescue the poor village._

_But, much to his dismay, when they arrived, there was no one and nothing to save. All the houses were on fire, bodies scattered the village. The smell of blood filled their nostrils and the King and his men looked, though doubtful, for any survivors._

_As he walked through the village, a small cry was heard. He strained his ears, listening intently. The King ran to one of the huts and opened it; the crying got louder. There, he found a woman, lying over a small basket. The King rushed to her side, but it was too late, the woman was already dead. Hidden in the basket, a brown-haired baby girl, an empty bottle in her hand, crying._

_The King decided to take her home and make her his own. His wife had just bore him a son. It would be best if they grew up with companions. And so, the king and queen raised their two children with as much peace and love as they could offer._

_Eighteen years had passed and news spread over the kingdom that their King had fallen ill and died. The Prince was to resume his position. He was a strong leader, brave and loyal. There was no doubt he'd become a great king._

_Every one knows every good king needs a queen. The Prince had grown to love his sister, more than siblings should. He had watched her grow up, from a small helpless child to a beautiful young woman. They knew each other like they each themselves. He knew his sister was not really his sister. They were born three months apart. It was not possible for his mother to give birth to two children only three months apart._

_The Princess, unfortunately, became ill. The Prince, now the King, called every physician, every potion-maker, anyone who could cure her. But months drew by and no one seemed to figure out what was wrong with her. Then one day, she fell asleep and never woke up. Of course, she was breathing, but no matter how hard the Prince shook her, called out her name, even burnt her finger for a sign, she did not stir._

_Distraught, the King, cried tears and promised he'd never fall in love with another, no one but his sleeping princess._

_She lay there, in her white dress, pale as ever. The King was true to his word. He had not married or been with another woman. On his deathbed, now, he had asked for her to lay beside him. He held her hand and whispered, "When you wake up, I will be gone. But know that my love is within you, no matter what."_

_And with that the king slipped away._

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Monday morning. Sakura woke up with a smile on her face. Not only had Tomoyo finally come back, but Touya had snuck into her room late last night to help her on her homework. She was ready to brave the difficult war she called school.

She had spent the whole day yesterday with Tomoyo, updating her on the things around the castle, mostly about Haruka's wedding and Cerberus. She dare not say a word about her brother, or about what had happened with Syaoran. It made her blush a deep red whenever she thought about it.

Sakura got dressed and headed towards her door when a note caught her eye. It was slid under her door. She opened it and smiled at the distinct handwriting she knew all so well.

_My dearest Sakura,_

_I'll be leaving early this morning with a friend of mine. I don't know when I'll be back, so I won't be able to see you for a while. I promise you I'll visit you as soon as I get back. Be safe. And don't do anything stupid._

_Touya._

_P.S. I heard the brat prince was looking for me. Tell that brat he's a brat. Stay away from him._

_P.P.S. I couldn't say this to your face because I knew you'd hit me. You got fatter. Exercise more._

Sakura frowned at the last P.P.S., but she laughed it off. She knew her brother would be safe. He was strong and wise, the person she'd always look up to. Her heart sunk a little knowing she wouldn't be able to see him, the closest thing to home, but with Tomoyo back, she knew she wouldn't be lonely.

Sakura slipped out of her room just in time to catch Kaya walking down the stairs. "Good morning!" Sakura called out.

Kaya turned her head and smiled. "Hey there, how are you?"

The two chatted as they walked towards the dining hall. After breakfast, they headed towards the carriages and everyone headed to school. Syaoran was nowhere to be found. It was a good thing for Sakura, at least, since she couldn't bear the thought of seeing him.

At least she knew she had her studies down, thanks to Touya. And for the first time in her stay at the castle, she was satisfied with everything.

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Time couldn't pass any slower. Akira was bored. She had successfully scared away all her suitors in the class and now no one talked to her, the girls being jealous of her beauty and smarts.

The prince was seated in front of her. He had come to school late, of course, without penalty. The whole day she had been staring at the back of his head, instead of paying attention to what was being taught. She wondered if the prince ever brushed his hair for, God, it was unruly. She noticed, too, that he frequently stared out the window, sometimes even more than she did.

It was lunch time for everyone except them. Their teacher was holding them for 30 minutes longer due to aptitude tests they were going to take within the next few weeks. Akira seemed more interested in the world outside the stone box she was in.

Her mind kept going back to the handsome stranger she met in one of the dark rooms of the South Hall._Touya.. Touya_. His name rolled off her tongue like water. She hadn't seen him since, but she was kind of busy anyway, what with her master being in the castle and all.

A familiar scene played outside. This peaked Akira's interest. She glared as a familiar boy led Misa out towards the tree. It was obvious Misa didn't want to be there.

Akira stood up, grabbing the attention of her classmates, the professor, and Syaoran. Without asking to be excused, she walked out of the classroom.

Syaoran, curious, wondered what she was doing before turning his eyes towards the scene outside.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Sakura spent her lunch break with Kaya. The two were walking through one of the gardens, talking about things they learned. Nerdy? Yes, but Sakura didn't want to talk about what Kaya wanted to talk about (Syaoran.) "I didn't know there was so much more to Tomoeda's politics." Sakura said, trying to be entertaining. "We have a really complex system going on."

"Yeah. I guess, it's understandable since you didn't grow up in the city. But in most towns, it's like that."

The two came upon a group of boys, surrounding a familiar pretty face.

"Oh look, it's Yuka!" Sakura pointed out. She was surrounded by the group of males, all trying to get to know her.

Kaya sneered. What a perfect way to ruin her day, seeing Yuka get more attention than she did. It was always like this. Yuka always got what she wanted and Kaya was stuck with nothing.

She walked up to the group, leaving Sakura behind. "Hey, there." she said rudely. "What are you doing?"

"I'm just eating my lunch.." Yuka replied quietly.

The boys looked at Kaya. "Hey there," one of them said. "What are _you_ doing?" The attention turned to Kaya as one by one, the boys gave their attention to the newcomer. They were 2nd years, most of them in Misa's class.

"Nothing much, just about to take a walk. Anyone care to join me?" The group took her invitation and they all started walking away, leaving Sakura and Yuka behind.

Once they were out of earshot, Yuka let out a sigh. "Honestly I never thought they'd leave me alone. Thank God for Kaya and her conceitedness."

Sakura frowned at the comment, but knew it was true. "Can I, um, sit down?"

Yuka nodded as she moved over on the bench, allowing a place for Sakura to sit. "I've never actually had the chance to get acquainted with you yet."

Yuka nodded. "Yeah. I keep to myself most of the time. As you see, I don't have many friends."

Sakura smiled. "Well things change, and people change. I wouldn't mind getting to know you better."

Yuka stopped eating and faced Sakura's emerald eyes. "Really? Even after I treated you so bad the first time we met?"

Sakura thought back to their first encounter. "Oh yeah, you called me a servant girl, didn't you?"

Yuka laughed. "Yeah. But only because I thought you were! I mean, you wore such a simple white dress and no make up. You didn't even do your hair! I didn't think you were a candidate for the prince.."

This was true. Sakura didn't dress up like the other girls did. They had their best clothes on, with powder on their faces and hair all curled or done up somehow. She was just plain commoner Sakura. "Yeah, I guess."

Yuka started eating again. "Anyway, I'm sorry about that. I never had the chance to apologize. Kaya always got in the way of me talking to anyone, if you know what I mean."

"It's alright, you don't seem like a bad person, well to me anyway." The two sat in silence for a while. "If you don't mind me asking, why don't you and Kaya get along?"

"Kaya and I? Oh it's a long story. Honestly, I don't remember why we stopped talking and when we started being so mean to each other. I don't think I did anything wrong. We used to be super close, but I don't know what happened. It's kind of sad.."

Sakura looked at Yuka, who seemed to be staring into the distance with a forlorn look in her eyes.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" A yell rang in the distance. Sakura and Yuka got up, looking for the owner of the voice. They hurried to the furthest corner of the garden. There they found Misa, hiding behind Akira, and a boy whom they didn't know.

A few other passersby watched the scene as Akira stood up to this stranger. "Forcing an innocent girl to do you bidding, you're disgusting."

"Mind your fucking business, red-head." He spat back. "She wanted it."

"I wanted no such thing!" Misa shouted from behind Akira. She was holding tightly to the back of Akira's shirt, shaking, tears rolling down her eyes.

"Yeah you did." Tasuki smirked. "I know you want me."

Akira glared at him. "You pathetic little pig." She took a step forward and punched him in the face. Tasuki took a step backwards, surprised that this girl could hit so hard.

"I usually don't hit girls, but I can make an exception." He swung his arm at Akira, but she successfully blocked it. Akira pushed Misa away from her, into the safety of a nearby tree. She then turned her attention to Tasuki, her mind filled with rage. She leaped at him with a yell, and scratched his face, making him bleed a little. He yelped as he fell backwards again, embarrassed he couldn't even lay a finger on this female stranger who came out of nowhere.

"Akira!" Sakura yelled from the sidelines, worried about the two girls. Akira's attention turned to Sakura. This was Tasuki's chance. He got back up and slapped her hard.

This startled her, enough that she barely noticed the shadow jumping out of her second story classroom window. Syaoran landed with a soft thud, bent low on the ground, swung his leg, and kicked Tasuki off his feet. His back met the ground with a crack and a cry of pain.

Syaoran got up and wiped his mouth. "You _never_ hit a girl." He turned around and asked Akira if she was okay. He then set his eyes on the shaking blonde, her eyes filled with tears. She could barely stand as she was holding onto the tree trunk for support.

He walked up to her and whispered something to her. She nodded in agreement and started to cry even more. The prince gave her a hug as Misa clung to him, crying.

A pang of jealousy ran through Sakura's veins as she watched the scene unfold. Not once did Syaoran notice her. But she let it go, as Misa's needs were more important than her own. Just then, a few of the teachers came by. Sakura's attention came onto the people looking out the windows of the class, and the other students who watched behind her and Yuka.

Syaoran picked Misa up into his arms, her own hugging his broad shoulders, her face buried in his chest to hide her face, ignoring the teachers starting to surround them. He started walking towards the infirmary. It was then that their eyes met. But only for a second, for the prince turned away before Sakura could understand anything.

Akira soon followed, not before spitting on the boy lying on the ground.

Sakura stood there, motionless, wondering why she felt so envious.

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They were just heading back to Touya's old home, only to gather the rest of his belongings. That was Yukito's excuse. He couldn't believe Yue fell for it. Or maybe Yue knew what was going on, he just didn't want to say anything.

"I don't understand why you had to lie about it," Touya said. "I mean, it's not like we're doing anything illegal."

"My brother doesn't like talking about Clow's Garden. He says it isn't real and that it's a waste of time trying to find it."

"I think it's real. For my mother's sake, I hope it's real."

The two had set out on their journey earlier that morning. They were currently at a border town, leading into the Tomo Plains. Clow's Garden was said to be somewhere in the plains, although no one has ever found it. They were currently at a bar, trying to find information on anything that would lead them to their destination. All they found were unwelcoming travelers and drunk soldiers on their breaks. Their intel mission wasn't going so well.

"I'm telling you, Touya, we don't need to gather information."

"Then how, smartass, do you expect us to find Clow's Garden?"

Yukito sighed. He took off his backpack and took out an old folded piece of paper. "I borrowed this from my brother's room. I found it a while ago, while I looked through his desk." He showed Touya a map with random scribbling he couldn't make out.

"Why didn't you show this to me before?" Touya said angrily.

Yukito turned a shade of red. "I wanted you to think I was smart.. but I couldn't figure it out." He smiled and turned away.

Touya shook his head and snatched the map from him. "Unbelievable. You're so dumb." He stared at the map closely. It seemed they were in the right place, Tomo Plains, but that was the only obvious part of the chart he held in his hands. There was no 'X-marks-the-spot', no arrows or dotted lines, just a map of the plains with illegible handwriting. "Honestly, how can anyone read this?"

"Beats me. But if we can't figure it out together, we might as well go home."

Touya glared at Yukito. "I am not going back." He returned his gaze to the piece of paper in front of him. He didn't understand, and it was frustrating. He was so close, well at least he thought he was.

But Touya wasn't about to give up. He wasn't about to lose hope. If anyone could figure this out, he could.

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Eriol wandered the halls of the great Tomoeda Castle looking at the portraits as he went his way. Nothing had changed. It had grown a little dustier since he had last been there, but everything was still in it's place.

He knew where he was going. The South Wing. The first thing Eriol noticed when he got to the castle was the missing presence of a certain brown-haired girl. There was once pictures of her and the prince everywhere; walls, fireplaces, there was even a tapestry woven for her in the main hall. He asked the Queen about her and he didn't like the answer. How could Ayame have passed away? He didn't believe her answer. And her eyes gave away her lie.

He remembered Ayame's room resided in the South wing, which was the reason he was heading there. A couple servants passed oppositely along the way, giving him nervous looks. Contrary to popular belief, he could not read minds. Eriol never liked being the renowned magician of the country. Everyone thought he could see their deepest secrets.

The only thing different about him was his high perceptiveness. Predicting the future? No, he just took into account everything he knew about a situation, came up with all the plausible outcomes, and picked the most likely one to happen. Reading minds? No, he just read people well. Their body language, and mostly their eyes and speech gave them away. He was a genius. All members of his family were.

He had inherited the old tradition of choosing and judging the future leaders of Tomoeda. After all, the great Clow was his great grandfather.

Eriol did have a secret power though, one he had to learn of himself. He was not allowed to speak of it because if he did, the power would go away. That is, whenever he touched someone, he could see the thing they wanted most. Although he didn't have this power when he was younger, it surfaced around the time the King passed away. Eriol's father had always told him to be patient, that a power would soon come to him, and that it could bring great success to him. And indeed it helped him in many ways, like gathering information. He definitely didn't know everything, but he did have the power to do so.

He continued in the direction of the South wing when he was stopped by a familiar face. "Good day, Eriol."

"Hello, Yue. How are you?"

"I'm fine, thank you. And what are you up to on this lovely afternoon?" Yue was suspicious. He was there when the Queen lied about Ayame being deceased. He knew Eriol didn't buy it. The question was, could he trust him to keep the secret, or should he hide it just like Yelan was?

"I'm visiting Ayame's old room." Eriol said blatantly. "I don't believe she is dead."

"I cannot allow you to do that." Yue said. His loyalty remained with the Queen. He couldn't betray her now. "No one's allowed to go there. Under the Queen _and_ Prince Syaoran's rules."

"And you are going to stop me?" Eriol smirked. He liked getting Yue angry, or frustrated. Well, anything really other than his emotionless self.

Yue put his hand on the hilt of his sword. "Please don't make me try."

Eriol thought it out. Maybe today wasn't a good day for him to be making enemies. He had enough of those already. "Fine. Ruin my fun."

Yue sighed in relief. He kept the Queen's secret safe for a little while longer.

"By the way, you have a little brother, correct? Where is he? I found his company rather enjoyable back in the day."

"He went off to the outskirts of town to collect one of our new recruits' belongings. He won't be gone for long. I'll let him know you were looking for him." Yue replied as emotionless as possible. He tried to hide his doubt about his brother and Touya.

Eriol raised an eyebrow. Now this was suspicious. Yue never let Yukito leave the castle. And with a new recruit? Someone he didn't know well? _Interesting.._ Eriol thought. _I must find out who this new person is._

"That would be wonderful," Eriol said. "Please tell him when he gets back." Eriol slowly turned back to the direction he came from with a smile on his face. But as soon as Yue couldn't see him, his lips curved downwards and he tried putting the pieces of this puzzle together.

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The ride back to the castle seemed longer than usual. Sakura sat in her carriage alone, thinking about what happened at lunch. She didn't see Misa or Syaoran after classes ended; they must have still been in the infirmary.

A pang of jealousy reached up and tugged at her insides again. Why was this happening? She refused to admit that she could feel something for Syaoran other than loathing hatred, but what else could this be? Maybe it's because he had kissed her, and then all of a sudden had his arms around another girl. He was a straight-up _player. _It wasn't jealousy, it was still anger.

Yeah. That's it. Sakura settled for that answer.

They finally reached the castle. Sakura was greeted by a flustered Tomoyo. "Hey, how was school?"

She told Tomoyo about the things that happened, especially during lunch, although she left out the "anger" she felt at Syaoran barely noticing her.

Just then, a man in a blue cloak passed. He had dark blue hair and wore glasses. Tomoyo hid her face as this stranger walked towards them with a smile on his face. "There you are!" he exclaimed, pointing at Sakura. "I knew you couldn't be dead!"

All the color drained from Tomoyo's face. What was Eriol thinking? Did he not know that no one was supposed to mention Syaoran's former fiancee in front of Sakura? Tomoyo waved her hands and panicked.

"Who? Me?" Sakura was confused.

Eriol seemed to take the hint from Tomoyo. He looked her, her brown hair that seemed to outline her oval face; the plainness of her school uniform; her knee-high socks and her skinny legs; the plain black flats she wore. She was exactly the same as Ayame in every way, except for extravagance in her style, but more importantly, the eyes.

"Last time I checked, I wasn't dead at all.." Sakura blinked a couple of times. It seemed the stranger ignored her words and kept starting at her. "I'm, um, Sakura." She tried to break the awkward silence. "You are?"

"His name is Eriol. He's a sorcerer, related to Clow himself." Tomoyo replied, trying to make Sakura forget about Eriol's earlier remark.

He let out a laugh. "Thank you, Tomoyo. And yes, my name is Eriol. You can call me Eriol." He let out his hand and Sakura shook it. Although when their hands touched, she felt a cold shiver down her spine. Something felt weird, as if someone was searching her mind.

Eriol turned to Tomoyo. "Hello again," he said. "Do you mind joining me for dinner tonight?"

Tomoyo turned bright red as she stuttered. "Uh, umm.. yes of c-course!"

Eriol smiled. "Good. Drop by my room around 8, I'll have dinner all set up in my room. You aren't busy around then, are you?"

"No, n-not at all." Tomoyo looked to the ground, too embarrassed to look at his face. "I'll see you then."

"It's a date." Eriol turned to Sakura. "Nice meeting you. Hopefully we get to spend more time together."

Sakura nodded her head and watched as the sorcerer turned on his heel and walked away. "A date?" She turned to her friend who had the reddest cheeks she'd ever seen, holding in a giggle.

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It had been painful for Misa to look at Syaoran. After he took her to the infirmary, he suggested staying with her. Of course, Misa declined but the Prince always had his way.

She had pretended to fall asleep after eating a bit to heal her shock. But Misa couldn't sleep. Memories of her home and her family kept wandering and she found her eyes kept filling with tears.

To her dismay, Syaoran stayed by her bed in a comfy armchair, reading a book. She had taken a peek at it: it had a red cover, a picture of some sort of large feline, and a bunch of circles, moons, and stars decorating "The Clow," its title.

They were in the carriage now, just the two of them. Syaoran refused help from the nurses and teachers, saying he could handle the situation and would make sure that she was in good health. He had devoted all this time to her. It was painful for her to look at him.

"How do you feel?" Syaoran said out of the corner of his mouth, his eyes gazing at the scene outside their carriage. His voice was firm and warm.

"I feel a lot better, thank you." She said as politely as she could, trying not to let her voice waver.

"Don't lie to me."

Misa's eyes quickly turned to the messy-haired prince. His eyes were on her as well. But for some reason, she couldn't tear her eyes away from his and unwanted tears started to form. She frowned, turned her head, trying to hide.

But he was all too quick; he had his finger on her chin and moved her face back towards his. Tears were running down her cheeks now. Why was Syaoran so kind? How did he know what she was thinking without speaking to her?

All her emotions seemed to burst out. "I miss my family, I miss my home!" she cried aloud. "I miss my friends, and it kills me because they're so far away, and I haven't talked to anyone in the longest time!" She covered her face and sobbed.

Syaoran continued to stare at her. He did not put a reassuring hand around her shoulder, not did he offer words of comfort. He just said, "I'm sorry," and returned to his original spot as Misa's heaves and cries died down.

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Tomoyo knocked nervously on the large wooden door of Eriol's room. "Come in," she heart him say. She turned the handle and walked in.

Eriol sat there, in midnight-blue dress robes with a book in his hand. "Perfect timing," he said with a smile. "I just had dinner delivered." He motioned for her to sit down as he laid out their food. The first part of dinner progressed easily and without any event.

It was not until they had finished did Tomoyo realize his true intentions.

"Who is that girl? The one with the green eyes?"

Tomoyo looked up, horrified. Was this some investigation into Ayame? What was she supposed to say? She couldn't betray her loyalty to the Queen and the Prince, but Eriol had this way of getting the information he needed..

"You mean Sakura?" Eriol nodded. "Ummm.. she's a girl from the village."

"And you are aware she shares an uncanny resemblance to Ayame, right?"

Tomoyo chose her words carefully. "I believe that to be the only thing she shares with Princess Ayame."

The corner of Eriol's mouth turned upwards. He examined the girl in front of him. Young as she may be, she was very clever for her age. She had beautiful dark eyes and a pale complexion, much like his own. Her long hair feel to her side in a braid and, simple as her clothes were, there was a strong sense of power emitting off of her.

"What happened to Ayame? Where did this copy come from?"

Tomoyo felt a sudden rush of anger. "Sakura is not a copy! She is kind-hearted and fair, things Ayame would never have been!" But then she realized what she had done and covered her mouth, tears forming in her eyes.

It was treacherous to speak of a Princess that way, let alone Princess Ayame, who was betrothed to Prince Syaoran.

Eriol let out a laugh. Tomoyo knitted her brows. "It matters not what you say in front of me. I do not judge you, nor will I tell a soul. My purpose is not to bring others down, unless of course, they deserve it."

Tomoyo looked down at her hands, as if Eriol had just said something embarrassing. Somehow, she felt she could trust him, even though she didn't want to.

"Are you going to tell me the things I want to know or must I find them out myself, straight at the source?"

"No! You mustn't! Sakura knows nothing of Ayame! And she is not allowed to! It goes against the rules.."

"The rules? What rules? I thought everyone in this kingdom had freedom to speak."

"The Queen forbids talk of the former princess," Although she was stating fact, Tomoyo found it hard to say. "She doesn't want Prince Syaoran to become more depressed."

Eriol raised an eyebrow of disbelief. "She doesn't want him to be all sad, yet she finds a look-a-like and lets her dwell in the castle?" Eriol was never fond of Queen Yelan, but his father had trusted in the King's ability to choose a wife for himself. She was very obedient until he was killed during her second term of pregnancy. That was when things changed..

"You don't understand, the Prince wouldn't come out of his room to eat! But if he did step foot outside his bedroom, it'd be at night when no one was awake, and he'd walk to the gardens to stare at the stars! It wasn't very becoming of a prince, almost at age. It was a miracle that the Queen came across Sakura!" Tears were now running down her eyes, at the thought of anyone thinking bad about her friend. "You should see him now! He talks and he eats and he socializes a lot more than he used to and.."

On and on she went about the girl with green eyes and the changes Syaoran had been going through. Eriol lifted his finger and gently wiped her cheek free of tears. She immediately stopped talking. "You look better with a smile." She tried her best, although her cheeks were reddening and her eyes shifted nervously to the floor. "I understand. You've grown to love Sakura. I do not wish to put her down. It just seems strange for her to appear when Ayame disappeared. Do you know where she was found?"

Tomoyo shook her head. "Only that she's not rich, not at all. And it was somewhere on the outskirts of town." She was still blushing, her eyes still staring at her feet.

"And what do you know about Ayame's death?"

"Not much," her eyes found her way to his face. "Only that she died because she was sick. They had a private burial for her, but us maids and servants and the like weren't allowed to attend. Rumor had it that the prince didn't even show up for it. Honestly, I don't even know where she's buried."

Eriol found this interesting. He looked outside through his window. Dark had fallen over Tomoeda. He had one of the few rooms that overlooked the village below. Many were hurrying into their houses, lights shone through windows. He saw castle men guarding the gates.

It came to him, why wasn't Ayame buried in the Royal cemetery with the previous rulers? He'd have to check up on this. He now turned his attention to Tomoyo, staring at him with an eyebrow raised. He smiled at her and watched as she immediately blushed and turned away. How he was blessed with such ill fate, he didn't know.

Being a magician wasn't as fun as he thought it would be.

Eriol sighed. "I guess you should go back now, and attend to your duties. I'm sorry I've taken your time."

"No, no," Tomoyo said. "It's fine. I haven't much to give, anyway. My time is the most important thing I have to share."

Taken aback at what she said, Eriol just smiled. How this young raven-haired girl seem to exuberate wisdom was beyond him.

"Shall I walk you back?"

"No, I'll be fine. Thank you." Tomoyo got up and Eriol opened the door to his room and watched Tomoyo walked out. No words were exchanged, only looks of thankfulness and, on Eriol's part, bitterness.

The moment he had touched her cheek to wipe away her tears, he felt what she desired most. And it was ironic that the thing she wanted most, she already had.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Yelan was alone in her study, reading up on a report recently written about the Hyon Kingdom up north, stirring their followers against Tomoeda. Long has been their history of war and bloodshed. Yelan wanted no part in war anymore, not after what happened 14 years ago.

Her thoughts were interrupted by a knock on the door. "Your highness, the Prince would like a word with you!" Wei, one of her few most trusted workers, bellowed from the corridor.

"Let him in," Yelan said as she hid the report under a pile of random papers. Syaoran walked hastily to her desk after Wei led him in. She laid her eyes upon her son, who still wore his school uniform. His hair was as unruly as it had always been, but there was a slight glitter in his eyes. "You almost never visit me, son. What's the matter?"

He was as blunt and direct as ever. "I'm sending Misa home."

Yelan was taken aback. "But.. but why? This is the second girl you've sent home! Is that the only reason you visit me nowadays? To tell me my choices weren't good enough?"

"You don't understand, mother!" His tone was pleading with her. This difference, this feeling of empathy, Yelan hadn't seen in her son since Ayame was with them. "She's miserable here! She misses her home, as would I if I sent away.. I already promised her she could return when she felt ready to leave. I just thought you'd want to know."

And with that, Syaoran turned on his heel and left.

"Wait!" Yelan yelled as Syaoran stopped in his tracks and turned to face his mother once more. "No more of this.. sending candidates home. It looks bad on me. My son, sending away these girls I've hand-picked, what an outrage." She slammed her hand down on the table. "As if my opinions on the traits of a good Queen aren't good enough for you! You don't have much time left. A little less than 2 months until your birthday _and_ your choice."

"Stop reminding me. I know what I have to do."

Yelan stepped around her desk towards Syaoran. "Do not speak to me like that, young man! I am the Queen and more importantly, your mother!"

"Last time I checked, Queen's cared about their people and mother's cared about their sons!"

She slapped him. Tears forming in her eyes. "I care about my people! I c– "

"What about these girls, whose parents, drawn by the greed of Royalty, gave them away hoping to become inheritors of Tomoeda and riches they otherwise wouldn't need?"

She stuttered.

"And what about me, mother? I don't want to marry! I cannot force myself to love just as much as you can force a pig to fly! You do not care about my feelings! In due time, yes, I'll find someone. But not like this. Not this way.."

Wei listened from outside the door. He had beckoned the servants passing the door to hurry up, so no one would hear their shouted conversation. It had always been like this, ever since the Queen's decision to pick candidates for Syaoran's marriage. They were always bickering, shouting at each other, and it didn't look very good for the Queen's health. Not at all.

"Are you going to abandon your duty, Syaoran? Are you going to rewrite the rules that have governed Tomoeda and its rulers for centuries? It is key you find a wife by your age of becoming! That way you are ensured an heir!"

"Can't you rewrite them for me?" He looked desperate now, his voice was barely a whisper. "You are Queen! You can do whatever you want! You won't change a rule for me.."

Queen Yelan swallowed hard at the sight in front of her. Her son looking very distraught, his eyes wide and pleading.

She covered her face with her palm. "I wasn't young when I had you, you see. Your grandparents died when your father was 17, thus making him King. But he was ambitious. Instead of securing a future for the family line, he fought wars and expanded the kingdom.

"At 52 he still hadn't succeeded in producing an heir. He got desperate and started having affairs with every woman. He was old when he found me. He was a full 24 years older than I was, and I was only 18. I was the youngest and healthiest of all marriage candidates, so he married me.

"He feared even more, he was 52 and without an heir. I believed he had affairs behind my back, with anyone, trying to produce a child. He thought maybe the problem lied within me, maybe I was barren. But it was him, he couldn't reproduce anymore. None of his mistresses succeeded. And so he lived his years, believing his kin would die out.

"He died without knowing about you, Syaoran. I was only two months pregnant when he passed away." Yelan smiled at him through tired eyes. "You are our miracle. I do not want the same thing to happen to you. You are, or were, exactly like your father. Careless. Please understand that what I'm doing is for your good."

His throat was so dry. He couldn't find any words to say. He only nodded.

"I've made many mistakes in life, Syaoran, too many. I cannot let you make the same ones I have."

She turned back to her desk and sat down. He took this as his signal to leave and bowed low before walking out of the room. Yelan sighed. If only her friend and once Royal Physician Fujitaka were here, he always knew what to say, he was always good with children. If only Fujitaka were alive, he'd be able to cure Ayame, then Syaoran's frequent outbursts wouldn't be happening in the first place..

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I am SO SORRY I've made everyone wait for so long! I have no excuse! I wanted to add more into this chapter, but I felt like I was adding bits of chapter 10 in it as well.. so I stopped.

I had this terrible accident where I fell and my face slid into gravel. I look horrible. ): But it's definitely healing. Anyway, I had just finished reading the whole series of HARRY POTTER since I'm stuck in my house for a few weeks and I realized I had half this chapter written out, and I still haven't finished it, and it's been.. months !

So yeah ! I'm super sorry for the delay. I'm stuck at home, so the next chapter will be out.. yeah. No promises (:

Cheers !


	8. Eight

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Eight**

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_Those who seek the Garden of Clow must only look through the sun's reflection._

Touya re-read the words over and over again. He found them scrawled on the back of the map, a place where both he and Yukito overlooked. It was only by chance that he dropped the piece of worn paper on the floor, and it flipped, revealing the message someone had hastily written on the back.

He would have ignored it if he didn't recognize the large loops in the 'ys' and the 'gs'; this was definitely his fathers writing.

"Sun's reflection, sun's reflection." Touya was pacing in the room they rented for the night. "God damnit, father, why didn't you write the answer?"

"Maybe he thought someone might find it, and they'd exploit Clow's Garden." Yukito was making stew. The sun was setting now. "We'll figure it out tomorrow."

Frustrated, Touya sat down and rubbed his temples. He had held up the map to the sun, as if he were _looking through_ to the _sun_.. but that resulted in nothing. What did it mean by sun's reflection? He even tried holding it up to the reflection of the sun in one of the bar windows. Again, nothing.

He let out a long sigh.

"You're going to get grey hair if you keep stressing out like that. Sometimes things come to you better when you're calm."

"Look who's talking," Touya said back angrily. "You already have grey hair."

"It's silver."

Touya looked at him, puzzled. "Why do you have silver hair, anyway? It'd not something I'd call.. _normal_."

Yukito turned his head to look at him, knitting his eyebrows. "Thanks, _friend_. And if you must know, it;s a rare gene passed down from my mother's side. It was a miracle that both my brother and I have silver hair. She derived my name from "snow" and my brother's name is obviously from the moon."

And then it hit him. Touya froze. He couldn't believe how stupid he was not to realize it.

When he was little, his father would sit with him and talk about the world, how their planet revolved around the sun, and how the moon revolved around their world. He had asked why the moon always changed shapes. One day, it'd be a full circle. A few weeks later, it'd be in the shape of a watermelon slice. Sometimes it wasn't there at all.

"When the sun shines on the other side of the world, it casts a shadow onto the moon. And that's why it seems to change shapes."

"But why does it make a shadow, father? Doesn't the moon have its own light?"

Fujitaka smiled down at his ever-curious son. "No, you see, the light we see from the moon is only the sun's light, reflecting off the moon."

Touya ran hastily to wall and opened the window. He gripped the map tightly as he held it up against the moonlight.

"Touya? What's wrong?"

A joyful swelling filled his heart as a marked spot just beyond the Plains became visible against the sun's reflection.

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News about Misa's departure traveled fast, not only through the castle but even amongst the villagers of nearby towns. Sakura knew Misa was foreign Royalty, but never did she know that Misa was the daughter of the Hyon kingdom's highest councilor, Jaques Moreau.

"This could have made peace with Tomoeda and Hyon. I don't understand why Syaoran dismissed her."

"I heard that her father had expelled her to the west, so she doesn't really have that much sway on her father and the other councilors."

"What? What did she do? She must have done something wrong to have been expelled from her kingdom."

It hurt Sakura to hear all these rumors as she walked down the halls towards the dining hall. They had 4 days off of school. When the Queen heard about what had happened to Misa, she made sure that Tasuki was looked after, and that his family were all well aware of the things he did. Yelan also took measures to make sure the staff were well trained to notice strange behaviours like these. Thus, the teachers were at school learning while the students had their days off.

She walked into the dining room. No one seemed to be there. She took a seat at the table and started to put food on her plate when she heard voices coming from the hall. From the sound of it, there were many people. Curious, Sakura got up and peeked out the door towards the noise.

She didn't recognize the faces. There were 3 boys chatting and laughing, among them was Syaoran. Sakura's face reddened all of a sudden before she jolted back into the dining room. Syaoran had friends over? She didn't even know Syaoran had friends!

Sakura took deep breaths as she returned to her seat. She took a sip of water. She swore that Syaoran saw her, that their eyes had met.

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Eriol walked briskly back to the castle. He had gone out early in the morning to visit the Royal Cemetery. What he found only confirmed his suspicion; Ayame was not buried there. Then where was she buried, if she was buried at all?

Yelan was hiding something from him. Yue was hiding something from him. He wanted answers and he wanted them now.

He got to the castle gates and didn't even stop to dust his shoes off before entering the great hall. He rubbed his temples. Where was Naruku when he needed her? Not once did she come visit since he arrived. Was she too busy with her duties that she forgot the real reason she'd come? Or was it because she couldn't find the right time, that it was too risky. After all, if she were to be found out, she'd be beheaded, and not even Eriol could save someone after they've been caught deceiving the Royal Family.

He slowly sulked back to his room.

"_A twinkle in the night sky far, far away; a golden star I gazed upon in my dreams.._"

A voice sang, ringing throughout the empty hall. Eriol looked over the banister to the floor below.

"_On a sleepless evening, I sing alone. Tomorrow I'll sing with you on the wings of a dream._"

Tomoyo. He rested his elbows on the wooden banister as he stood, peacefully listening to her beautiful voice. He had first laid his eyes on her when young Prince Syaoran turned 8. Tomoyo was only 5 then, but she had been chosen to sing for the crowd as a performance. It was the most beautiful voice he'd ever heard in his life. How much that young girl had grown.

"_A twinkle in the night sky far, far away.._"

"You should be more careful about what you do in your spare time, Master." Eriol turned around. Naruku. Only she had the ability to sneak up on her like that. "Some people might think you're _in love_ with that voice, by the way you look right now."

Eriol chuckled. "It's ironic, isn't it, Naruku, how I have everything and nothing at the same time." He looked painfully to the floor.

Naruku was never good with words. She didn't know what to say. So she didn't. It wasn't until Eriol had started his way back to his room did she follow suite. Once they got behind the privacy of closed doors did she state her business.

"It's nice to see you, Master." She bowed as he sat down on his chair.

"Go on, what have you found out?"

Naruku straightened, a crooked smile on her face. "It seems you were right, Yelan is hiding something in this castle. The South building, to be exact."

"Ahh, yes. I encountered Yue there the other day. Didn't let me through. Did you manage to find out what it was?"

"Not _what_ it was.. but _who _it was."

Eriol looked puzzled. "Go on.."

Naruku's smile got even wider. "Nadeshiko Hyon. Although she's gotten a little older.."

"You mean _Princess_ Nadeshiko?" Eriol couldn't hide his surprise. He felt so many things at once, he didn't know how to explain it. He had never not known anything during his life. He knew Yelan was hiding something, but something this big.. "Are you certain it's her?"

"Are you questioning my ability to scout? Of course I'm sure it's her. She may have aged in time but her face is still as beautiful as the face that hangs on the wall of the Hyon Castle Great Hall. I would know, you sent me there on private business 4 months ago.."

Eriol sat back in his chair, not sure what to make of this new information, and also unsure of where the future might be headed.

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"Have you heard? Syaoran invited people over! Isn't that amazing? He's definitely changed!"

Meiling sat in front of her mirror, combing her long dark hair. It was smooth as silk. She wanted to keep it that way.

"I'm not interested, Em." Meiling plainly said back.

"Oh for crying out loud, Meiling. Stop brooding over Syaoran like this! It's not going to get you anywhere! Besides, some of his 3rd year friends are pretty cute, you might want to see for yourself. I passed a few of them on the way to your room."

Meiling sighed. "Let's just go down for breakfast, Emmalyn."

The two of them walked down the hallway. Voices could be heard coming from the hallway near the dining room. As they drew nearer, Meiling recognized the green eyes and long brown hair, talking to someone.

"I swear I've seen you before," the other person said. He had long black hair and a cute smile. She recognized this boy, he was Councilor Shusui's eldest son, although she didn't know his name. He had attended the party the Queen had thrown for Syaoran.

Sakura shyly nodded her head. "I'm sorry, I really don't know what you're talking about." She turned to leave when the boy put his hand out to stop her.

"Well then, how about we get acquainted? I'm Shou." His smile turned into a cocky smirk. He didn't look so cute anymore.

"I'm Sakura." She bowed politely. "I must be leaving now."

"Why are you in a rush? There's no hurry. Besides, I'm not going to be here all day. I'd like to get to know you better, beautiful."

Meiling scoffed. Her? Beautiful? Um no, Sakura was the meaning of plain; always wearing white, never any make up. She wondered what Sakura would do in a situation like this. Emmalyn turned to her with pleading eyes. "Meiling! We need to help her!"

"No. Let her be. Let's see if she can solve her own problems."

"Where are you off too now, my lovely Sakura?"

"The library. I need to study." she answered coldly. Again, she turned to go, but Shou held out his hand again, stopping her in her tracks.

"You don't understand, Sakura. I like you."

Sakura glared into his dark brown eyes. "Well I'm not liking _you_ very much, right now."

He was taken aback by her boldness. He chuckled. This girl amused him. "Spend a little time with me and I might just change the way you think." He stroked her cheek with his finger.

SLAP

"Don't you dare touch me!" She screamed, running out of his reach. She stopped, turned back to see the look on his confounded face before she ran away. He was frozen, he hand covering his red cheek. Shou looked up to see Sakura's white dress running down the halls and out of site. He clenched his fists in anger before he let out a sarcastic laugh.

Meiling glared as she started walking again towards the dining hall. Shou turned around to see the two girls, slightly embarrassed.

"She's feisty." Emmalyn smiled.

"Yeah.." Shou said before you slowly walked away, a little dazed.

This was too much. Meiling clenched her fists. "Ugh!" she growled. "Why does she _always_ get the attention? It's too much! He didn't even stop to look at us! Are we not worthy of his attention? What do guys see in her anyway? She's so plain, it drives me mad!"

"Hey, shh, stop, Meiling!" Emmalyn put her hands on Meiling's arms and tried to calm her.

"It's not fair!" Tears were now forming in Meiling's eyes. "I hate her so much!"

Emmalyn didn't know what to say. From the way she saw it, Sakura did nothing wrong. It wasn't her fault that Syaoran took an interest to her, or that boys took a liking to her. But she didn't want to be Meiling's voice of reason at the moment. Emmalyn pulled her friend into a tight hug as Meiling cried.

But in her mind, Meiling had already decided what she was going to do about the situation.

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Sakura ran to her room as fast as she could and shut the door. What was with her and strangers touching her face? Did it look that soft? She cupped her cheeks as gasped for breath.

"Welcome back.. that didn't take very long."

"Tomoyo! I didn't know you were here! I'm sorry.." Sakura inhaled and exhaled deeply before she went to her bed to play with Kero.

"What happened?" Tomoyo saw the troubled look on Sakura's face as she petted the young lion. Sakura shook her head in response. "What's that supposed to mean?" Tomoyo walked over to the bed side and lifted Sakura chin with her finger. Sakura's face was red and there were remnants of tears in her eyes. Tomoyo glowered, then decided to leave it alone. "If you don't want to tell me, you don't have to."

"I'm sorry, I just.. I don't want to talk about it." Sakura sighed. Tomoyo resumed folding the laundry she had just done and tucked the linens away in the wardrobe beside Sakura's armoire.

"It's fine, I understand." Sakura looked at Tomoyo, expecting a reproachful look. "Honestly, Sakura. It's fine. I do understand. There are some things we can't speak about, even to ourselves. Don't worry about me. Take care of yourself first." Tomoyo smiled before she walked quietly out of the room.

Tomoyo sighed a bit, before looking for the Prince.

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"It should be around here somewhere.."

Touya and Yukito had walked for a full 6 hours before finally reaching the spot on the map which the moon had lit up. They were deep in the forest. After walking a little more, they ended up in a clearing, only to be disappointed by the appearance of the mountain.

"What the hell? There's no mountain on this map!" Touya stared at the map in anger. Yukito looked over his shoulder.

"Well, in the map's defense, it didn't say anything about a forest either, yet we've been walking through it for most of the day."

Touya grunted. How were they supposed to get past the mountain to the other side?

"Hey! Touya! I think I found something!" Yukito was at the base of the mountain. He traced his fingers over markings carved into a slab on the side of the mountain. "It looks like it could be an entrance, this big piece of stone!" He was excited.

Touya blew over the markings and rubbed them clean. He recognized this pattern! It was a circle encasing an image of the sun and the moon. Encompassing the circles' border were tiny stars. This was Clow's mark! "We've found it!"

They tried to move the rock with their combined strength, but it didn't budge. They tried for 15 minutes. Nothing worked.

Disheartened, Touya kicked the large stone slab, before realizing that was a mistake. "Damnit!" he cried as he held his foot in anguish.

"Do you ever think before you act?" Yukito asked calmly from where he was sitting on a rock..

"Not when I'm angry." He looked at the stone again. The only thing standing between him and the cure for his mother was this stupid large piece of stone. How the hell was he supposed to remove it? _Think, Touya, think! If father went here alone, then there must be a way, some mechanism that gets it open without manpower.._

Touya looked around again. There had to be a way for his father to move the stone without help. How did he do it?

"Maybe the _sun's reflection _has something to do with it, haha!" Yukito joked.

Touya looked at him, stunned. Yukito, unknowingly, was absolute brilliance.

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Sakura walked to the garden alone. She sighed. It was nice to be alone. Then again, she was always alone.

Had it been right to slap Shou? She had felt endangered, and therefore acted on instinct. But the last time she had slapped someone, it had been Syaoran.. _Prince _Syaoran.

Sakura shook her head furiously. _What am I now, on first-name basis with him?_ Honestly, she didn't know the prince at all. What she did know, she learned from observation, and Tomoyo and the others of course. He was mean, but kind; harsh, but gentle; bold, but shy; hot-tempered, yet mostly quiet; and most of all, a pervert, considering he tried to touch her _and_ he kissed her without consent.

Well that wasn't confusing at all.

No, it wasn't that the prince was confusing, but her feelings towards him were. They had only just met, they barely talked, but it felt like Sakura had known him forever. All those times they caught each others gazes, they were like secret conversations that went on forever, yet only lasted a second.

Should she apologize to Shou? She didn't mean it, but it couldn't be helped. Sakura knitted her eye brows as she lay stretched out on her back on the grass. Spring was always Sakura's favorite season. That's when all the flowers would bloom, and the animals would come out. She felt like she was at home when she was surrounded by wildlife and vegetation.

Suddenly, a purple flower came into her view, along with a hand holding it. Sakura got up carefully, looking to see who it was. Her eyes met Syaoran's and she froze. "S-Syaoran!"

Syaoran smiled and he shoved the flower in her face. "I heard you weren't feeling well, so I picked this for you." Sakura looked back and forth from the flower, to the prince's face. Was he being serious, or just playing with her?

"Are you not going to take it?"

She slowly took the iris from his grasp as he sat down beside her. "Is this your was of saying sorry?"

"Sorry for what?"

Sakura glared at him. "What do you mean _sorry for what_?" He honestly didn't know what he was supposed to be sorry for. She gave him a few seconds to think before he shook his head again.

"Sorry for what?" he repeated. "I wasn't aware I did anything wrong."

"How dense can you be? You got mad at me for meeting someone a few days ago, then you barged into my room unannounced, and you somehow have the _nerve_ to kiss me!"

"So you did see someone!" He puffed up his chest. He had felt bad for accusing her of meeting "Touya" that day when he wasn't sure, but this only confirmed his suspicions were true.

"Oh, that's not the problem here. You stole my _first kiss_ from me, you ass. And then you go and ignore me the whole of yesterday! You didn't even try to explain to me why you did it! I've been confused for 2 days, not knowing what to think! And then you come and give me a flower!"

"It's your favorite, isn't it?" he asked.

"My favorite what?"

"Your favorite color. Lavender."

Her green eyes blinked in amazement. "How did you know?" Syaoran laughed at the blank expression on her face, until her expression turned into a glare. "You didn't go sneaking around my room, did you? Or asked people about me, did you?"

"No! No, I swear, I didn't do anything!"

She hit his arm, gently, but still with the intent to cause pain. "Then how do you know my favorite color is lavender?"

"You're overreacting!" He slid away from Sakura, trying to get out of reach from her abusing fists. "I don't know, I just guessed!"

Sakura ceased her hitting, crossed her arms, and pouted. "Am I that easy to read?"

Syaoran laughed again. "You're unpredictable."

"Is that a bad thing?" She was no longer crossing her arms, but had them outstretched in front of her on the grass, her body leaning towards him. Her innocence was unbearable.

"Well, it's one of the things I like about you." The air fell silent as the two stared at each other. Sakura didn't know what to say. She wasn't even thinking. This was getting awkward. "I mean.. it's what others tell me about you, you know, you're unpredictable.. it's a likable quality, you know? Heh.." He tried to save himself, but she continued to stare at him with disbelief.

A few seconds passed until Sakura turned her body properly forward, no longer leaning on her palms. She played with the stem in her hand, as if Syaoran wasn't there.

"Um, I should go now.." he said, getting up slowly. She didn't say anything. But her eyes looked joyful. He knew he must have said something right, finally. "About that kiss.. I'm sorry. I don't know what happened, honestly. I just sort of.. reacted."

Sakura's expression changed, although she didn't look up. Her eyebrows furrowed and she felt a bit angry. So it wasn't because he felt any feeling.. it's just cause he reacted.. whatever that was supposed to mean. "Do you kiss all the girls you meet?"

"Only those I care about."

Sakura stopped breathing. Syaoran sensed the shift in the awkwardness level from slight to severely extreme. He took this as his cue to leave. He didn't have to run, but he did. He raced himself to the door, his cheeks red as a beet.

As were Sakura's cheeks. She rolled the stem of the lavender iris between her fingertips. Had he known that the iris was her favorite flower, too?

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Syaoran didn't know Sakura's favorite color. He didn't know how he knew. He just had a hunch and went with it. It's not like she wore lavender clothing, or ever stated she liked the shade of purple, he just.. he just knew.

Tomoyo had been looking for him earlier, and said that Sakura hasn't been in the best of moods lately, and she wasn't sure why. Tomoyo then said he should cheer her up and do something nice. She gave him one of those evil plotting smiles before she skipped away, back to her duties.

He shrugged his shoulders as he walked down the halls towards the courtyard, where the soldiers usually trained. His friends would be waiting there for him. He hoped Sakura like his gift, even though he had picked the iris from the flower bed by the pond.

The guards opened the doors to the training grounds for him. He nodded and walked through. It was a bit childish, but Syaoran never liked having guards stationed at every door. He could open his own doors. It was a waste of time, he thought, to stand by those doors all day. How boring.

"Syao!" Someone called out to him. It was Hiroshi. He had a baby face. His father came from the Hyon kingdom, which is why he had blonde hair and hazel eyes. "Syaaaaoooraaan! We're over here!" he yelled loudly, as if Syaoran didn't hear the first time.

"He heard you, Hiro." said Daichi, before he waved too. Syaoran walked towards them, maneuvering through the training soldiers. Shou was sitting down around on of the wooden benches drinking water. The three of them were all suited up in their training gear. Shou nodded towards Syaoran, who did the same.

All four boys were 3rd years. They were in the same class. Hiroshi, though, was a year younger in age (explaining his baby looks), but due to his advanced intellect, they decided to put him in the 3rd year class. They also had grown up together, often causing mischief at gatherings in the castle, playing hide-and-seek under the huge skirts of ball gowns, holding contests to see who can drink the most punch. When they got older, they often had contests to see who was most skilled in fighting. This of course, was all for pure enjoyment and not to cause any harm to themselves and to each other. It was a way to test their abilities and improve them.

Syaoran had not hung out with the three in a while. It was probably 7 months now. He did miss the company of his friends. And, after all, when he becomes king, Hiroshi, Shou, and Daichi would be apart of his court. At least that was a comfort to him.

They walked to a part of the training ground that wasn't used. Syaoran suited up while Daichi and Hiroshi fought. Their swords were drowned by the timely yells from the real soldiers training, led of course by Yue. He looked so fierce before his troops as he walked up the lines, yelling instructions. Yue was someone Syaoran looked up to. He had the air of respect, and he deserved it as well, but he also had this kindness to him. Military commanders were never kind, as far as Syaoran knew, but Yue understood his soldiers. He even knew all their names. Syaoran hoped he'd be a leader like that someday..

"Prince Syaoran.." It was Shou. He was the only one who addressed him with titles. "You've been daydreaming again. Do you now want to fight me?"

Daichi lay in the patch of shade, breathing heavily. "Ahhh I'm gonna die!" he gasped.

Hiroshi sat on the ground beside him laughing. "I didn't hit you _that_ hard."

Shou and Syaoran took their spots, about a meter apart from each other, their weapons drawn. "May the best man win," Syaoran said, before rushing forward at him. Shou saw this and he dodged, turned on his heel and aimed for Syaoran's back. Syaoran saw this too and he ducked, missed the sword by an inch. He then swung his foot, hoping to catch Shou off guard and knock him down, but Shou jumped out of the way, and stood further away.

"I met someone today. I was hoping you'd help me to get into her good graces." Shou said, a bit out of breath."

"Oh? Who might that be?" the Prince answered before charging at him again. Their swords made contact and from then on it was a battle of parrying, dodging, and quick footwork.

"She's amazing beautiful." He was having a hard time speaking, trying to keep up with Syaoran's movements and hard blows. "She's got long brown hair, fair skin, and the most beautiful green eyes I've ever seen."

Syaoran froze for a second, before realizing he was talking about Sakura. Shou had met Sakura? What does he want from her..

Shou had noticed his blows got ever more forceful and his movements even more stealthy. Had he said something to make His Majesty angry? Had he pulled on one of his heartstrings? "Your Highness?"

"You speak of Sakura. My mother has chosen her as one of the women I must choose from for my bride."

"Ah, I see." Their blows continued at such a high standard, even some of the soldiers were looking now. They had gone so far from the corner on the courtyard where Hiroshi and Daichi were now standing to see their fight. They exchanged blows with equal amount of strength and speed. "I ask you then, Prince Syaoran, what you have planned for that girl."

He was making him mad. Syaoran never was one to control his anger, but he had to, especially when there was a possibility that his friend could be wounded. "I like the girl. I'm going to keep her for a while."

"That isn't fair, I like her too, and I plan on winning her heart."

Their eyes met and Syaoran was paralyzed by the look on Shou's face. It was then that Shou took his opportunity. He kicked Syaoran's foot and he fell to the ground. Shou dug his sword into the ground right beside Syaoran's face. The audience watching them gasped. No one had ever beaten the Prince in a combat.

"May the best man win, then." Shou's hand was stretched outwards to help Syaoran up. There was a hint of cockiness in Shou's smile that made Syaoran spit to the side before he helped himself up. They shook hands.

"Good battle." he said, acknowledging his defeat.

"It's not over yet." Shou stated, before turning his back and walking to the others.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

They waited until night. The forest was a bit creepy, Yukito had to admit. But he mustered up his courage and tried to pretend the woods didn't hold any ferocious beasts.

The moon was shining brightly. Touya sat at the carving on the stone wall. The moon had cast its light upon it, but nothing happened. He was deep in thought when Yukito came over and gave him a cup of tea. Touya thanked him and they sat there, warming their hands with the heat from their cups.

"I don't know what to do now." Touya admitted. "This makes sense, when the light hits the carving, it should open. I don't get it."

Yukito studied the carving a bit more. He outlined the sun with his index finger, and then the moon. He traced the circles that enclosed the two heavenly symbols and then touched each of the stars. Then something caught his eye. In the center of the carving, a small shape could be seen. "Touya. I've seen this before.."

Touya looked at the symbol himself, and it hit him again. Yukito was an absolute genius. scrambled for the map. It had been the same symbol that was on the map when the moon's light hit it. What if only the symbol was to be lit, not the whole carving? Yukito watched as Touya held the map up towards the moon. It was a wing, a small wing. That was the symbol that showed them where Clow's Garden was hidden. It was also the symbol that was in the dead center of the carving.

Touya aligned the paper with the carving. When he did it properly, the carving was in the shadow of the map, while a long ray of moonlight passed through the map and onto the center symbol on the rock.

The ground shook. Yukito got up from his spot and ran to Touya's side. The stone slowly slid open, as if magic were pulling it to one side. When it was fully open, The two boys looked at each other, huge smiles on their faces. They lit a torch and walked through, into the darkness of the cave.

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Akira sat in the _Dead Room_. She named it herself. The Dead Room was the room where Nadeshiko lay, breathing heavily. She came to visit every other hour or so, under Eriol's strict orders. Who would have though, Queen Yelan would be harbouring such a woman.

Princess Nadeshiko was the Princess of Hyon, the northern kingdom, and the one with which they held the most hostility to. Her disappearance was what caused the Hyon family to act however many years ago it was. It caused the Great War between Tomoeda and Hyon, in which that war her own parents died.

Naruku's hate deepened for the Queen. So she had Nadeshiko here all this time, unconscious, when she could have just surrendered and prevented the Great War from happening.

Nadeshiko breathed harder. It didn't look good at all. She was sweating, barely, but still sweating. Her chest lifted and fell more often, more evident.

_Hurry up, Touya_, Naruku thought as she put a hot cloth over his mother's forehead to hopefully help her beat out the fever. _I don't think she's going to last much longer._


	9. Nine

Fanfiction written by ******Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Nine**

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It was day two of no school and Shou was in good spirits this morning. He dressed in a white loose shirt with gold trimmings and a pair of black riding pants. He put on a dark blue coat and headed to the front door.

"Where are you going?" came a voice from nowhere. Shou turned around. His 12-year-old sister, Suzu, was standing there, still in her night gown.

"I'm going to the castle. Say hello to mother for me, would you?"

Suzu nodded. Her long dark wavy hair framed the side of her face like a china doll. She smiled. "Be careful out there, brother."

He nodded before turning back and walking out the door. He walked to the stable boy who was readying his horse. The sun was almost above him, it was about an hour before noon. He needed to make it there quick. "Thank you," he said curtly after taking the reigns of his horse and climbing on.

Before leaving the castle yesterday, Shou had sought out Meiling and asked for a favor. He didn't really know her well. They were introduced once, and saw each other occasionally at parties, but he couldn't call her an acquaintance. He hoped she would hear him out. He found her in her room, sulking over something. He didn't ask because girls were too complicated for him.

"I need you to get me alone with Sakura."

"Seriously?" She raised an eyebrow. The nerve of this boy to ask her such a troublesome thing.

"I just want to get to know her, spend some time, you know.."

Meiling crossed her arms as she lay against the backboard of her queen-sized bed. "No, sorry. That won't do."

"What?"

Meiling looked at Shou. He was pretty cute. He had a nice pair of hazel eyes and a sly look of innocence on his face. Not to mention he was dirty and sweaty from his battle with Syaoran. This made him ten times hotter.

"What's so special about Sakura anyway?"

A smirk spread across Shou's face. He finally understood. "You're jealous of the pretty little miss, aren't you?"

"I'm not jealous!" Meiling shouted. There was a 5-second silence before Shou burst out in laughter.

"You sure?" Shou took a seat on a chair near her full-length mirror. He put his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands. "The way I see it, if you get me my time with Sakura, you can have Prince Syaoran all to yourself. It's a win-win situation. I'm helping you, you're helping me. How about it?"

It didn't take much more than that to convince her.

Today was going to be fun. He smirked as he rode off towards the castle of Tomoeda.

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It seemed like they had walked forever, with only their torch to guide them. Touya and Yukito surveyed their surroundings with utmost care; then again they didn't really have much to see. It was all cavernous rock and ceilings too high up for their torchlight to reach.

"Do you actually think there's a garden in this cave?" Yukito voiced his doubt aloud.

"It has to be here. The map led us here, and that moving rock blocking the gate totally proved there was something to hide." Touya tried to make himself sound sure, but he wasn't. They'd been walking for almost an hour. How far were they from the entrance? How far underground have they traveled?

Yukito bumped into something. "Ouch."

"Seriously, watch where you're going.." Touya scolded. It wasn't the first time Yukito had bumped into something today. Not too long ago, he had fallen and almost dropped their one and only torch into a puddle. From then on, Touya had taken it upon himself to carry their only source of light.

Yukito had bumped into a large pillar, carved into the shape of a sun. Touya put the torch closer to it. "Hey Touya, it looks like you can light it!" Indeed, there was a cup-like structure on top with the ashes of what used to be a fire.

He put the torch in the cup and it lit up. As if on cue, more pillars lit up with fire, and the lights made a path which seemed to lead down the hall they were in. The two young men looked around them. They seemed to be in a slightly smaller cavern, but this one seemed to have been worked on. There were two neat rows of square pillars running from the floor to the ceiling, all the way down the room right behind the pillar with the sun statue. Each pillar held a light. At the end of the runway lay a large black thing.

Yukito pointed. "What is that?" They slowly walked closer. The thing seemed to be moving.. no, _breathing. _"I think it's.. alive!"

Two blue eyes opened at the end of the hallway. Touya could see the silhouette of a large animal.. a back tiger maybe? The creature got off the platform it was sleeping on and slowly walked towards them. Touya and Yukito froze in their spots.

"Your names?" It's mouth did not move, but they heard a powerful voice echo through the room. Its eyes bore into them like the relentless rays of the sun in a desert. Touya couldn't escape the nervous feeling he had in the pit of his stomach.

"Touya Kinomoto." he said firmly.

"Y-yukito Tsukshiro."

The creature's eyes fell upon Touya. "It is my understanding that you, Touya Kinomoto are the reason the two of you have come here. Am I correct?"

"Yes." he said loudly. "I'm here to find the cure for my mother, Nadeshiko Kinomoto."

"Then you have come to the right place. I am Spinel Sun, Guardian to the Garden of Clow." Spinel Sun never moved. He just stared into Touya's eyes. His voice resonated in his mind. He couldn't tear his eyes away from its beautiful blue eyes.

"Are you going to show us where it is?" he asked, unsure of what to do.

"You are not aware of the terms, then." Spinel Sun stated.

"What terms?"

"You come to take what is of this garden, you must give something in return. You seek the wisdom of my Master, you must be wise yourself. What my Master seeks is a sacrifice. You cannot give life without taking one. It will imbalance this world. So I will ask you this: In order to save your dying mother, you must sacrifice the life of another of your kin. Am I correct that all you seem to have is your little sister? Can you possibly do that?"

Touya's heart stopped. How can he possibly give up Sakura? How could he possibly be the end to her innocent life? He couldn't live without her smiles, or her uplifting remarks. He had almost died not being able to be with her for 2 months now. What if he could never see her again?

But their mother meant everything to them. She was their rock, their source of support and comfort. She modeled strength and wisdom in a way no other could possibly do. He longed to see Sakura's face when their mother woke up again, when she could freely walk and smile.

And then he knew what he had to do. In order to care for the lives of the ones he loved, he had to sacrifice himself.

"Take mine. The lives of my family everything to me. What have I if I don't have them?"

Spinel Sun didn't looked surprised, as if he was expecting this answer. "Is that your final decision, Touya Kinomoto?"

Yukito glanced at Touya nervously, but Touya didn't look shaken. Instead, he hardened his glare at Clow's creature and answered, "That's my decision."

Spinel nodded. "Very well. Follow me."

He turned around and started walking towards his platform. Touya and Yukito followed. Yukito caught Touya's attention and gave him a wavering smile. Did Touya just do what he think he did? Did he just give up his life? Yukito respected Touya ever greater now. Would he have done the same for his family?

When Spinel Sun reached the wall, he sprouted the most beautiful black wings. What exactly was he? The cavern started to shake as the wall they were looking at split apart, revealing a waterfall. Spinel backed up. "Through there, you will find your answers." He nodded and watched as the two nervously walked through the waterfall.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Sakura raced down the hallway, clutching a piece of paper in her hand. She ran past the kitchen and the Great Hall, all the way to the other side of the castle. She'd only been to this side once, when she had nothing better to do. She remembered vaguely where the _Rose Garden_ was. That's where she was headed.

The double doors were visible down the hall. Sakura ran even faster now. Her heart was beating double-time, but she couldn't stop. _I hope I'm not too late!_ She flung the doors open to reveal a small garden with a patio in the center. They bred all sorts of colored roses here, hence the name Rose Garden.

Sakura scanned the area, hoping to spot what she was looking for. "Haruka!" she called out. "I'm sorry! I slept in! Are you still here?"

No answer. The note said to meet at noon but it was already an hour past that. How could she not have woken up? It's not like she always slept in.. okay that was a lie. She _did_ always sleep in.

Sakura took a step down the staircase towards the gardens. The smell of the roses filled the air as she looked around once more. She walked to the patio where there was a small round dining table for two. She always wondered if anyone ever ate out here. How nice it would be to have a quiet and peaceful lunch out here in the garden..

"You came." Sakura turned her heel. She knew that voice, although she wish it weren't so. She came eye to eye with hazel and she glared.

"Why are you here?"

Shou laughed. "You aren't happy to see me?"

"Not really." Sakura looked at the note again. How could she be so stupid? It was Shou that left her this note, not Haruka. Her hopes were dampened and she wanted to go back to her room.

"Look, Sakura," Her eyes shot up again, glaring at him. He held up his hands in defeat. "I'm sorry I led you here under false pretense. I just didn't know how else to get to talk to you. We started off on bad footing and I want to be your friend.."

Shou walked around the table, reached down, and took out a picnic basket. He smiled. "Will you have lunch with me?"

Why was he doing this? Why had he led her here just to eat lunch with her? Did he have some hidden agenda that she couldn't see yet? Was he really a nice guy?

"You _did_ slap me. The _least_ you can do is spend an hour with me.."

Sakura's stomach growled. She didn't have time for breakfast because she woke up late. When she found the note on her desk she erased any other thought and headed straight for the Rose Garden. "Fine." Sakura gave in. She crossed her arms. "Everyone deserves a second chance. And I'm hungry."

Ten minutes later, they were starting their meal. Shou had prepared sandwiches of all sort because he didn't know what she liked. He also brought soup and sparkling juice. Sakura tried her best not to look to happy. After all, this was the guy who had said some really rude things to her the other day. And he did lure her out, like some creepy predator.

But as the minutes passed, Sakura realized she had been too quick to judge. Shou tried his best to make conversation. He talked about things he thought Sakura was interested in, like books. He also made her laugh. He was charismatic.

Near the end of their meal, she kind of regretted not giving him a chance earlier. She smiled now not because she was forced to, but she did truly like his company. He was not at all like Syaoran, who never really talked, or laughed. Shou was easy to be around, but with Syaoran it was hard to think of something to talk about.

They cleaned the table as they talked about school. Shou was telling her about Sakura's current teacher, Kaho Mizuki. He said they used to have a thing but stopped since not only was Shou 12 years younger, it was embarrassing and shameful that she had done things with a student of hers.

Sakura laughed all the while thinking it wasn't true, and that Shou was just making it up..

From the castle, Syaoran boiled with anger. Shou had not shown up for their bout at noon. He had a servant search for him and when he was informed he was in the Rose Garden with a girl, Syaoran heart sank. Rushing quickly from one side of the castle to the other, his suspicions were correct. He stood staring out the third-story window as Sakura laughed with his friend. She was adorable, her long brown hair falling over her shoulders, her white gown complimented her slim body.

But what got to him was her smile. He'd never seen that side of her before. She laughed like she had no care in the world. How his heart ached with jealousy. How was Shou able to make her this happy? Syaoran was the prince! He had all the means to give her happiness.

He turned on his foot and walked away from the scene. He couldn't stand it anymore.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

They'd never seen anything like it before.

They were soaked from head to toe after walking through the waterfall. It was a paradise underground. They were in a humongous underground cavern. It was not dark in here; they couldn't explain why. The air seemed to be untouched. There were trees and plants that the two boys had never seen before. Flowers of every color bloomed on rocks and on tree trunks. In the center of it all was a lake, which the waterfall they had just walked through led to. There was an island set in the middle. There was a small shrine on the island and a stone pathway leading to it.

Touya and Yukito walked down towards the little shrine, admiring the beautiful scenery and once in a while, stopping to smell the odd plants here and there. They got to the edge of the lake when Yukito pointed something out. Something, or _someone_ was moving in the shrine.

They both recognized that long brown cloak, that familiar shade of brown hair, and those eye glasses..

They ran across the stone pathway. Yukito almost slipped and fell in the lake. Was it really who he thought it was? The man who he thought of as his father, the man who had cured Yue from his sickness. Touya reached out. Was this a dream? Father.. His mind kept racing back to the times when his father would come home to them, brown cloak and all. He smile and tell them how much he missed them, and then spend everyday with the family until he had to leave again.

The figure turned around to face the two boys who were running across the rocks over the lake. He smiled and held his hands out, as if welcoming them.

"Father!" Touya cried out as he ran into the arms of Fujitaka Kinomoto.

"Touya! And even Yukito!" He pulled Yukito into their embrace as the three stood there, like a family. "You finally came to visit me!"

"How are you alive? My brother said you died in the war.."

Fujitaka laughed. "My boy, there are many things I don't understand either. Now what brings you here?"

"Mother. She's on the verge of death. I had hoped we'd find the cure here.."

Fujitaka let go of the two, slowly walking away to the center of the open shrine. He knelt down and bowed his head. "Who did you sacrifice in order for your mother to live?"

"Myself." Touya clenched his fist. He did not know what would happen after he left the shrine, or when his life would be taken. But he sacrificed himself, and not Sakura's. That's the only thing that mattered.

"I'm afraid that Nadeshiko cannot be saved." Fujitaka kept his head low and his eyes closed. Touya couldn't read what he meant.

"I gave my life in order for my mother to live, I don't understand why that won't work."

"She doesn't want to be saved."

There was a moment of silence and Touya took this in. What did he mean? His mother didn't want to be saved? What kind of bullshit was that?

Fujitaka got up and walked to the edge of the shrine. He leaned on the banister and looked down at the water. It was so clear, that one could see the fish swimming a meter away in the lake.

"There are things I never got the chance to tell you, Touya." Fujitaka looked at his son with a heavy heart. "I am a foolish man, son. I hope you never grow to make my decisions. No, I know you won't. You're your mother's son. She is the reason you grew up right. I wouldn't have made a good father to you."

Tears started to build up in Touya's eyes. What was his father talking about? He loved him so dearly. Touya didn't say a word, though his eyes never left his father.

"I will tell you now, the story of how I betrayed all those I loved. I understand if you hate me afterward, but I ask you listen with an open mind. Here is the story of how our family fell into ruin."

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

_Knock knock_

Tomoyo dropped the brush she was using to straighten Sakura's beautiful hair and rushed to the door. "Your majesty!" she said, surprised, as she bowed her head.

"Is Sakura here?"

"Yes," Tomoyo opened the door. Syaoran took a step in as Tomoyo rushed back to Sakura's side.

Sakura turned and faced him in her chair. She blushed slightly at the sight of him in his Royal outfit. He wore a forest green shirt, a black vest lined with gold trimming, and loosely fit black slacks. His sword hung at his side and his hair was a bit messier than usual. "What do you want?" she said coldly, trying to disguise her surprise.

"Meet me at the gates at dusk. There is something I want to discuss with you."

"I don't see why you can't talk to me here."

Syaoran furrowed his eyebrows. Why couldn't she listen like everybody else? Why did she have to be so damn stubborn?

"Seriously woman, do as you're told."

"No. I want to know why. I've had my fair share of surprises today, thank you very much. For once I'd like to know what people intend to do with me."

He was once again taken aback by her boldness in the way she talked to him. No one talked to him with such confidence and pride. He gave up. She wasn't going to listen.

"I want to _show_ you something."

"Show me what?"

Tomoyo nudged Sakura in the shoulder. She was being too mean to the sad Prince.

"Please, just trust me."

Sakura sighed. Her eyes met Tomoyo's. She read the message in her friend's eyes. _Give him a chance_.

"Fine."

"I have your word then? Be at the gates at dusk?"

"Yes, yes. I'll be there."

Syaoran smiled. He nodded at Tomoyo before he left, closing the door behind him.

Tomoyo took up the brush and resumed untangling the knots in Sakura's hair. "What do you think he wants?"

"Honestly, I don't know. I hope it's not something dumb though, like him trying to touch me or something."

Tomoyo laughed as she looked at Sakura in the mirror. "You know, he's never done that before."

"Done what?"

"Asked someone out, not for a while."

Sakura's mind wandered. Why was Syaoran such a loner in the first place? What made him so gloomy all the time? Why was his changing so evident to see for everyone? She stared at her reflection as Tomoyo began braiding her hair. She hoped this was what Queen Yelan meant when she asked her to "change him" the day she started living in the castle.

"Should I start picking a dress for your date?" Tomoyo giggled.

* * *

Naruku crept into the small hospital room. She sat on the chair beside Nadeshiko's bed and felt her neck. She was still alive and her pulse was normal. She took a cloth and wiped Nadeshiko's forehead. This was the second time today she had visited this woman.

Naruku stared at her beautiful face. It was soft and peaceful. Nadeshiko's hair was so long that strands were hanging off the side of the bed. Naruku sighed. In a way, Touya looked somewhat like his mother. He had her nose, her slanted eyes. She wondered if their attitudes were the same.

She had known his father too. Master had told her that Nadeshiko ran off with Fujitaka Kinomoto. It was the night before the last day of the Great War. The Queen had returned from the battlefield with a bunch of wounded soldiers. It was then that she caught a glimpse of Fujitaka in a brown cloak, in the infirmary. He was attended to the wounds of the soldiers, bandaging them and giving them medicine.

The Queen had run into the infirmary and hugged him. Naruku was confused. Why was the Queen hugging another man? Even though she was a widow at the time, it didn't mean she could run around hugging people. Her master had quickly pulled her away, saying that wasn't the right place for a young girl like her to be during that time of night.

Eriol was on strict business. He was searching for the missing Princess Nadeshiko at that time. He had heart Fujitaka knew where she was, so he was hoping to have a word with him. But he was sent out to the battlefield that night, to tend to more wounded. It was that next morning when they received news that Fujitaka died in a night raid.

A slight groan woke Naruku from her thoughts. Nadeshiko stirred. She turned her head as her eyes opened. Her grey orbs fell onto Naruku as she sat there paralyzed by surprise and fear. If only Touya were here to see this.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

"I love your mother very much. I miss her more than you know. But it is I who is killing her."

Fujitaka paused, sighing. Touya and Yukito stood there listening, breathing as quietly as possible.

"We'd had you, Touya, and your mother was pregnant a second time. We lived on the outskirts of Ledaia. We didn't know about the great war. No one from our tiny little village knew. I was a doctor by then. A letter reached us from Queen Yelan, asking for my services. I owed her from a long time ago, so I had to leave. I worked for the castle, treating wounds and such. But there came a day when the things I did weren't enough to save our people. So I sought out Clow's Garden.

"It was then that I made my mistake. The guardian stated that the one you sacrifice must be of your kin. It made sense, that to save the lives of many, I had to sacrifice one. I selfishly sacrificed your mother, my beautiful wife. I was foolish. If I had sacrificed myself, who would save all those people? And I would never take the life of my son, someone so innocent, someone who hadn't lived his life yet. Other than that, there was no one else that I was related to.

"I became famous as the man who could cure all. I used the cherry iris, a beautiful purple flower found only in certain spots of this garden. When I came back for the first time to visit your mother, she was in her last term of pregnancy. I couldn't see it, but she was slowly getting weaker. Days drew by and with every time that I visited, I noticed. I snuck her a potion of the cherry iris that I made, but nothing seemed to make her better.

"One night I came back to the garden, hoping to cure her. I did the right thing that time; I gave myself in order to save my wife. As time went by, I felt myself getting weaker. Nadeshiko's state didn't get any better. I was confused, I was desperate. I didn't know what to do. It was hard for me to return home, seeing Nadeshiko's life deteriorate every time. I didn't tell her what I had done. I was a coward. I am still a coward."

It all fell into place. The reason behind his mother's mysterious sickness, how nothing could cure her. His father selfishly gave her a death sentence so he could rise to fame as the Doctor Who Cured All. He didn't know how to react. He didn't want to say something he would regret, but for the first time in his life, he hated his father.

His fists were white, his face was pale. Touya had his eyes on the back of his father's head the whole time, listening to and taking in every word. Angry tears were slipping from his face down to the ground below. He wanted to yell in anger, hit something, curse aloud, but he couldn't move. He was a mix of emotions, sadness, anger, disappointment.

Fujitaka turned around to face his son. "I couldn't tell you all that without looking you in the eye. I can't express how sorry I am. I don't ask you to forgive me. You can't. I wouldn't."

More silence. Touya looked at the face he had adored since he was a child. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath of the clean fresh air that surrounded him.

Fujitaka spoke once more. "I don't have much time anymore. I was granted only enough to tell you the truth. There's a vial of the cherry iris potion I've made in a tree trunk beside the waterfall; you'll know which tree it's in because it's leaves are tinted gold. That is good enough for 1 person. Take it, it's yours. I've also left the recipe on how to make this. It's difficult, so be careful. But I don't advise you to use it. That potion has saved many lives, yes, but it's also contributed to the hate between Hyon and Tomoeda. The fact that our soldiers started healing quicker made it easier to beat our enemies, but they didn't have to be our enemies in the first place."

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

"Nadeshiko?" muttered a surprised Naruku.

The beautiful woman on the bed the smiled. "You have beautiful eyes."

Naruku smiled. "How are you feeling?"

"My time is almost done. My husband speaks with my son."

Nadeshiko closed her eyes again and took a sigh of relief. Naruku sat there, dumbfounded. What was she talking about? How did she know about Touya? Was Fujitaka still alive? There were so many questions buzzing through her head that she felt a bit dizzy.

"You know him, my little Touya?"

Naruku nodded.

"Tell him for me, that I love him. And that I'm sorry, sorry to be such a burden."

Naruku reached for Nadeshiko's cold hand and held it in her own.

"Tell my father I'm sorry too, for running away with the man I love. If it were not for me, there would be no war."

Naruku frowned. Nadeshiko's hand suddenly felt heavier. "Nadeshiko? Nadeshiko!"

"Please, tell my children I love them."

And then her eyes closed. She wore a smile and seemed to be at peace. Her chest stopped rising. Her hand fell to her side. Nadeshiko didn't even know this woman, yet she was crying.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Dusk.

Sakura and Tomoyo waited by the gates. She heard the sound of hooves. They turned around to see Syaoran on his white horse. He had a jacket and riding boots on. She didn't want to admit it, but he looked very handsome riding on his steed.

"You're here." he said curtly.

"I said I would be." Sakura turned to Tomoyo. "Thanks a lot, I'll be fine now."

Tomoyo smiled at the two of them before whispering into her friend's ear. "Don't have too much fun, now."

"Tomoyo!" But Tomoyo was already running towards the castle, giggling.

Sakura turned to Syaoran. "Where are we going?"

Syaoran jumped off his horse and held out his hand. "Have you ever rode a horse before?"

"When I was little, yes."

"Good. I expect you not to whine then." He helped her up onto the saddle. She wore a dress, so both her legs dangled from one side of the horse. Syaoran climbed on. "Hold tight, we need to be quick if we want to get to where we're going."

"Where are we going?" She was met with silence. She awkwardly placed her hands around his waist as he kicked the side of the horse. They started off at a trot before turning out onto the grounds of the village.

Sakura realized she'd never been outside of the castle walls before. Then again, they were allowed to. But if she was with Syaoran, she'd be fine. They sped past the houses of the village and before she knew it, they were outside the city of Tomoeda.

They were on a wide rocky trail before their horse stopped to let them off. Syaoran tired the reigns to a tree near a small watering hole before they walked into the tall grassy field.

"You took me to a field." she stated blatantly.

"We're not there yet. Stop complaining."

"I'm not complaining." Sakura ran ahead of him onto the grassy plain. She turned around and stuck her tongue out before running away.

Syaoran smiled to himself. "Crazy girl." He ran after her.

They raced for 10 minutes before Syaoran slowed down and told her to stop. They were on top of a hill now, with a single tree. It's leaves bore the signs of spring. He sat down near its base and lay on his back, head cradled by his arms. Sakura did the same. There was alight breeze that whipped her hair as she sat beside him.

The sky was dark now. They could see a few of the stars. Their breathing slowed as they lay silently.

"What did you want to talk about?" Sakura asked.

Syaoran chose his words carefully. One wrong line and he knew Sakura would get up and walk away. "I saw you with Shou today.. it looked like you were having fun."

"He wanted me to have brunch with him, that's all. A change in company is nice once in a while."

"That's good."

Sakura was for some reason a bit disappointed with his answer. It was different. Being with Syaoran was different from her earlier encounter with Shou. Their conversations had been loud and full of laughter. He was always trying to get her to talk about herself, her habits, her likes and dislikes. There was almost never a moment of silence.

But with Syaoran, ninety-nine per cent of the time were these long pauses of nothing. She didn't know what he was thinking. She didn't know what to say. It was as if they were having some sort of battle of who could go the longest without saying anything.

But for some reason, she liked it. She liked being in his company, even though they didn't talk. She liked the sound of his breathing, even his scent.

"You were spying on me again, huh?"

This riled him up a bit. "No." he answered quickly. "I just passed by. I saw you laughing with him in the garden. I wasn't spying on you. Why would I spy on you?"

Sakura let out a laugh. "If you say so."

Another long pause. The stars seemed to shine a bit brighter. The sun had almost set.

"What do you like about him?"

"Who? Shou?" Sakura heard him nod. She thought hard. "Well, he's very charismatic. He's a brilliant conversationalist. I didn't like him when I first met him, but I got to know him today. He's not that bad. You have the ability to make cool friends!" she teased. "Plus, he's kind of cute."

She turned to look at him, trying to figure out his reaction. But there was a stoney look on his face that she couldn't read.

She was suddenly aware of her heart beat. Had it always been that loud? She took a deep breath, trying to slow her blood pumping down. Syaoran seemed to have that effect on her. She took down a mental note to stop allowing him to do that.

"You like him then?"

"Yeah, he's a nice guy."

Syaoran frowned. He anticipated that answer, but hearing it from her made his heart sink. Why did she do that? _How_ does she do that? It was like she had a string around his heart and pulled it whenever she wanted to.

He had to admit; he was hurt.

Sakura saw the change in his expression. She wasn't the best at reading people, but she knew that she had said something wrong. Even in the dark, she felt something changed on his face. "I don't _like_ like him.. he's a good friend, that's all."

This seemed to ease his mind a bit. So she didn't like Shou in that way, just as friends. Syaoran smiled to himself. Sakura sensed this and she eased up a bit too. Out of the corner of her eye, a light flickered. She got up abruptly and turned to where the light was coming from. It was small, and it floated randomly here and there.

Syaoran got up to. "It's starting."

Suddenly, more lights came from nowhere and started flying around. _Fireflies._ She looked around as millions of little lights buzzed around them, lighting up the field beneath them and the darkened sky above them. Her face brightened as she started giggling.

"It's beautiful!" She stood up and started dancing about, running after a few, trying to catch them in her hands.

Syaoran stood there, staring at the beauty he was witnessing. The fireflies only did this once a year. He was one among few who knew when they would mate. It had been a good decision to bring her here. Out of all the girls, he knew she was different. He knew she was special.

That beautiful smile, those green eyes. He had a hard time erasing them from his memory, especially when he slept at night. Her laugh haunted him. He wanted to hear more. He wanted to be the only one whom she'd laugh and smile for. He was so envious when he saw Shou receiving her attention and joy. He longed to be the reason she smiled.

For the first time in a while, he was at peace. He forgot about his duties as the Prince of Tomoeda. Tonight, he was just a country boy, hanging out with a pretty girl whom he had feelings for. Yes, he already knew it. Deep in his heart, he had feelings for her. It was indescribable, the happiness he received just from seeing her happy.

"Syaoran! Look!" She ran over to him and opened a small crack in her clasped hands. "I caught one!" Suddenly, she stumbled. She released the firefly as she spread her arms out to catch herself as she fell. But she wasn't very good catching her fall, either.

She landed on him, her palms beside his head, her body in between his legs. The two stared at each other, blushing wildly in the dark.

"I–I'm sorry.." she whispered. She tried to get up but Syaoran put his hand on the side of her cheek.

She didn't dissent. His touch was warm to her skin. Her heart told her this was what she wanted. This was what she longed for. His attention, his touch. She gazed into his eyes. Her cheeks got more red.

He didn't know what he was doing. But it felt right. He pulled her head down gently towards his as he slowly closed his eyes. Their lips touched. As fast as it happened, it had ended. Sakura pulled back and sat on her knees. Syaoran sat up too, scratching the back of his head.

"You're going to call me a pervert again, aren't you?"

Sakura smiled and shook her head. "No." She looked around at the fireflies once again.

"I'm sorry."

She turned her attention back to Syaoran. "What for?"

"Kissing you."

"I kissed back."

He smiled shyly. Their laughs broke the awkward silence.

Syaoran looked down at the grass. "I was jealous. Earlier today. You looked so happy.. I wanted to make you happy, too."

"You have. This is absolutely beautiful. I've never seen anything so beautiful in nature before. Thank you." She took his hand in his and held in on her lap. Once again, their eyes met.

"Can we do it again?"

"What?"

Sakura's face couldn't get any more red. She thanked God it was dark.

"Can I kiss you?" came his reply. Sakura nodded before she leaned towards him.

Her hands found their way to his cheeks as they embraced. He moved closer to her, his legs around her tiny body. He held her waist in his arms.

This was the happiest he had been in a long time.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

"There is also one more thing I must tell you. Your life is safe. I've already sacrificed my life for your mother's, even though she won't recover. It's her wish to be with me, even though I did such an evil thing to her.

"There is more to the truth that I've told you. A great web of lies and deceit has been spun in Tomoeda. This you must learn for yourself, I do not know everything. Your mother and I love you all very much."

Fujitaka held up his hands. Both Yukito and Touya stared at them as they started to fade away. "Father!" Touya cried as he reached for him, but he was met with air.

"Take care of your sisters, Touya."

"No, father!" he cried.

"I'm sorry that I couldn't watch the three of you grow, but I know you will be good. I just know it."

"Father please!" Touya pleaded as he bent on his knees. Fujitaka's body started to fade as Touya wept. "There is so much I need to tell you, so much I need to say!"

"Don't worry, Touya. I already know. Whenever you need me, look to your heart. Your mother and I will always be there."

"Mother? My mother is still alive!"

"No, Touya. She died with me a long time ago. Her body is still there, but her soul has departed. We were granted this time to tell you of our mistakes. But now that we're free of them, our souls are at peace. We can rest together. Finally."

Fujitaka was almost gone. Touya could see right through to the trees in the background. "No! Don't leave me!"

But there was no one there in front of him anymore. A cold shiver ran down Touya's spine. He brought his hands to his face and cried.

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The sound of keys could be heard from the hallway. Naruku looked back and heard someone unlocking the door. A rush of panic sent her looking for a place to hide. A curtained part of the room was the best place she could think of as she quickly ran and hid behind the curtains.

From her place, she could see the door to the secret infirmary open. The Queen walked in with her personal assistant and doctor, Wei. Yelan walked over to Nadeshiko and sat where Naruku had been a few seconds ago. The only sound she could hear was her own breathing.

Yelan took Nadeshiko's hand, then muttered something to Wei. He rushed to the other side of the bed and checked her pulse. Yelan waited impatiently for the verdict.

Wei nodded as he withdrew his hand from Nadeshiko's neck. The Queen covered her mouth and looked sullenly at the woman on the bed. She bent over her and stroked her face. Wei started to fix the sheets of Nadeshiko's bed. Yelan ordered his to do something as he took a clipboard from the bedside table and scribbled something.

Before leaving the room, Yelan planted a kiss on the woman's forehead and covered her face with a blanket. The two left the room.

It was a while before Naruku felt safe to move. But before she did, she turned around. She let out a little yelp.

There on the bed was a girl fast asleep. She looked like Sakura, with her long braided brown hair and white dress.


	10. Ten

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

(A/N) Just so you don't get confused, this chapter took place on the same day as the Chapter 9. If I had added it to the previous chapter, it would be one long hell of a chapter. Happy New Year !

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_The Iris and the Cherry Blossom  
_**Chapter Ten**

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Meiling had done what Shou asked her to do: get Sakura to the Rose Garden at noon. Of course, Meiling knew exactly how to do it. Sakura had been quite attached to Haruka, and was seemingly happy when Haruka surprised them all with a visit and invitation to her wedding. So thinking smart, she wrote a letter signed _Haruka_ and slipped it under her door when Sakura was asleep. The mindless brunette would think Haruka actually wrote that letter asking her to meet her in the garden at noon for lunch and urgent news.

Shou, holding up his end of the deal, had asked Syaoran to eat breakfast in the dining hall with him. So the next morning when Meiling went down for breakfast, Syaoran was there, surprisingly. She couldn't remember the last time he had eaten with other people. Shou wasn't present. And Meiling had the Prince all to herself. She only hoped Sakura in all her mindless idiocy would follow her instructions and not show herself at breakfast.

"Good morning," Meiling smiled.

"Morning, Meiling. You haven't seen Shou, have you?"

Meiling grabbed a bun from the center of the table and shook her head. "Nope. Why?"

"He was supposed to meet me here." Syaoran looked strangely uptight and tense. "He couldn't be wandering off through the castle.." he muttered to himself. There was nothing on his plate.

"What were you planning on doing today?" she asked innocently, pretending not to notice his anxiety as she grabbed another bun and placed it on his plate for him.

"We were just going to talk about a few things.. and we were going to practice sword-fighting after breakfast.. I hope he's not wandering around.."

Meiling looked at him, highly suspicious. "Why would you not want him wandering around?"

Syaoran was staring into space. He didn't even notice that she'd put food on his plate. "It's nothing.."

Their conversation was interrupted by Kaya, who chose the most untimely moment to walk in.

She watched helplessly as Kaya sat down beside him and smiled. Kaya was so beautiful. Meiling felt so plain next to her lean figure and her beautiful long black hair. And the expression on her face was one that Meiling never witnessed before. It was a full blown smile. Kaya never smiled like that, she only turned the corners of her lips.

So that was her secret, her smile. That was how she was planning to win, by overpowering Syaoran with her beauty. Meiling cursed inwards as she sat opposite, not saying anything, tolerating Kaya, and eating her food.

"I never see you down here, Your Highness." Kaya said, trying to start a conversation.

Syaoran scratched his head. "Yeah, Shou was supposed to be here, but I guess he slept in? That bastard."

Kaya giggled. Meiling sneered at her high-pitched laugh. She could tell Kaya was trying to be extra cute and dainty. It was driving her mad.

"Awwwe, that's okay! I'll keep you company." She smiled one of her smiles and Syaoran smiled back. "What are you planning to do today?"

Oh no she _didn't_! It was supposed to be Meiling's day with Syaoran. She was not going to let some black-haired beauty ruin her chances with the Prince.

"He has sparring practice with Shou later." she stated, matter-of-factually.

Kaya gave her a cold look before asking Syaoran, "Is that true? Can I watch? What are you doing after?"

Meiling glared at her again. This girl almost tried as hard as she did! She wouldn't be beaten so easily, no, not Meiling Li. She searched every part of her brain for an excuse to get Syaoran away from Kaya.

"Isn't your mother's birthday coming up soon?" This was the perfect excuse. "I could help you find a birthday present for her, _like I did last year_." She looked at Kaya, who only glared back.

Syaoran got up from the table. "I'll call for you later, Mei. After I find Shou." He hadn't even touched his food. With a quick nod to the both of them, he left the room.

Meiling had a satisfying smirk on her face as she turned towards Kaya. Her eyes only deepened with hatred. "You see, Kaya, the difference between you and I is so immensely huge that you cannot get close to where I stand with the Prince. I've been with him all my life. You've only been here for two months."

Kaya sneered. "No, the difference between you and I is that you're his blood cousin and I am not. Who would want to date their cousin?" Meiling turned a light shade of pink. "And besides, I'm prettier than you. I've got more sex appeal. You may have a connection with him that I don't, but I definitely have everything else. You'll only ever be family to him."

Kaya picked up her plate and headed out the door. Tears burned in Meiling's eyes.

She knew it. Of course, Kaya was right. _Family_. That's what she was to Syaoran. She was his cousin. That's all she would ever be. But it hurt ten times more hearing it from someone else. Meiling dried her eyes as she got up to find Emmalyn.

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Emmalyn was out in the front courtyard, talking to someone Meiling didn't recognize when Meiling found her. She looked furious, but spoke in a harsh tone that Meiling could barely understand.

"Don't come here again! I don't want anything to do with you anymore!"

Meiling didn't want to intrude, so she waited at the stairs leading to the castle doors. The strange person wore a long cloak and had their hood over their head. It was probably a man; Emmalyn looked like a doll compared to the tall person towering above her. Whoever it was didn't want to be recognized. His horse stood, neighing impatiently behind him.

"Why are you doing this? You don't even like the Prince that way!"

"Lay off. We're over. We were over a long time ago. I told you, this is none of your business." Emmalyn turned to leave when he caught her hand. Meiling could make out a silver bracelet from under his cloak."

"Let go of me!" Emmalyn pulled her arm towards her as she shouted. "Leave me alone!" She ran towards the direction of the castle when she saw Meiling standing there. When she reached her, Emmalyn smiled. "Hey."

"Who is that?"

Emmalyn turned to face the stranger who was now getting on his horse. "An old boyfriend. He heard about me and this whole marriage thing and then he flipped out."

"Is it true? You don't like Syaoran?"

Emmalyn sighed and took Meiling's hands into her own. "I thought you'd notice somehow. I guess not." When Meiling shook her head, Emmalyn laughed. "No, I don't like him. He's a good guy and all, but I'm not into his type. He's too.. protected. He's the Prince after all. I'm into independent guys, who can take care of themselves, you know? And plus, Syaoran's too handsome. Just think of the girls I'd make angry if we actually married."

Meiling scoffed.

"Oh! I didn't mean it like that.." Emmalyn blushed. "Anyway. You were looking for me?"

"Yeah. I hate Kaya."

"Oh? So you're on Team Yuka now, huh?"

Meiling crossed her arms. She knew about the obvious tension between Yuka and Kaya. Her and Emmalyn were talking about it the other day. "I'm not on anyone's team. Kaya's just a bitch."

Emmalyn giggled as the two walked back into the castle. Meiling told her about what happened at breakfast just 10 minutes ago.

"Syaoran came down for breakfast?" Emmalyn gaped. "That's some serious bullshit right there."

"No, he did. He was supposed to meet Shou."

"Oh. I saw him a little more than an hour ago. He was carrying a basket or food or something. It smelled so good!" Emmalyn giggled. "Now _he's_ more my type of guy."

Meiling couldn't get herself to tell Emmalyn the truth, that the two had conspired to get Syaoran and Sakura alone. It was embarrassing that Meiling had to go through such measures to get a few moments with the Prince.

It was hard enough, with him usually cooping himself up inside his room. It was even harder with all this competition around. And it was even more impossible when Sakura was around.

But now that she thought about it, Sakura was nothing like Ayame. Well, they looked the same and had the same kind of shyness, but Sakura was way more outspoken than Ayame had been. She had heard about when Sakura confronted Syaoran and even yelled at him when he sent Haruka away. She had known no one would could speak to him like that other than his mother.

Ayame never once spoke out of turn. She was the perfect princess. Of course, she was raised by the Queen, so it was a given that she acted like a princess. She never voiced her opinions and always went with what people told her. Meiling hadn't really been particularly close to Ayame, even though the three of them grew up together. Whenever Meiling came over, Ayame was always tagging along with her and Syaoran, watching from the sidelines as they did stuff like climb trees or make a mess in the kitchen.

Yet somehow, she managed to capture Syaoran's heart. Ironically, Meiling was once again defeated by the same beautiful face. Meiling couldn't get her head around it. Maybe it was because Sakura was so plain that he liked her. She was in denial.

The two girls were in the receiving hall when Syaoran came through one of the doors, obviously furious. He set his eyes on the pair of friends and walked to them.

"You're not busy, are you?" he said harshly, his face was red and he was breathing loud, as if he had just been running.

"No," Meiling replied.

"Good. Come with me to the town. I'm going to get something for mother."

Meiling nodded. She looked at Emmalyn who smiled. "See you later then." Emmalyn turned and exited to go to her room.

"Let me get my cloak. I'll meet you here in five minutes."

"Alright." Meiling said. Her heart was thumping so loud, she could hear it in her ears.

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Yue knocked on the door. "Come in," he heard, as he slowly turned the door handle and walked into the Queen's private chambers. She sat with her back against him, looking out one of the large windows in the room. In the corner, the fireplace burned.

"You called for me?" Yue bowed. Her room had not changed one bit. It still smelled of roses. The sheets and drapes were red and gold, despite the color of the Li clan, which was green. Yue frowned. The only ones allowed inside this room were himself, Wei, and the Queen. This was why no one ever questioned the Queen's choice to furnish her room with the Hyon colors of red and gold.

He knew the reason why. He knew why she was so miserable all the time; why she'd wander around aimlessly; why she stared out of windows hours at a time.

She was still in love with Fujitaka Kinomoto.

"I had a nightmare." she spoke, not daring to look him in the eye. Her back was still turned and Yue couldn't read her.

"What was it about?"

Yelan always had nightmares. Maybe they were the result of a guilty conscience. He knew the burden of her past actions weighed her down like boulders on her shoulder.

"I saw her. Nadeshiko. She woke up and said something. But I didn't hear, I couldn't make out what she was saying to me." Yelan stood up and walked towards Yue. He saw a redness in her eyes. Heavy dark circles were forming. She looked tired and worn out. "She was probably saying sorry, that she caused me so much pain." Yelan scoffed. "That whore."

Yue stared in silence. He didn't know what to say. Nadeshiko was a delicate matter with the Queen. He was probably one of the few people that knew about their history, if not the only one.

Nadeshiko and Yelan were friends from different countries. They met when they were young. The Queen preceding Yelan, and her mother-in-law, had visited Nadeshiko's parents in Hyon. That was, of course, when Tomoeda and Hyon were still on good terms. Yelan was the Queen's personal maid. Princess Nadeshiko took a liking to Yelan right away and the two became good friends, to a point where Nadeshiko requested to spend as much time as possible with Yelan.

So every summer, Nadeshiko would spend a couple weeks at Tomoeda Castle to be with her. She helped her with her duties and then the two would find themselves playing in the gardens, or riding the horses.

It wasn't until later that Nadeshiko met Fujitaka. He was an apprentice, originally from Hyon, learning under Tomoeda's Doctor.

Yelan had always liked him. The first time they met was when he was rescued from a group of bandits. Apparently, he was taken from a small village on the outskirts of Hyon when they stole into his village and killed everyone. They spared his life because one of men from the gang saw how he was trying to bandage and treat his dying mother's wounds.

They took him on, even though he was very young, to be their healer. Fujitaka lived with the bandits for a year until he managed to escape to a small town and warn the them of the bandits he was living with. By then, the gang was in Tomoeda. A small army of soldiers was dispatched from the castle and the bandits were sentenced to death in the morning.

Fujitaka was given a room on one of the upper levels of the castle. Yelan was asked by her Queen to keep a watch on him, just in case. As she passed by his room, she heard him crying. Yelan came in to find him, remorseful of how he turned his back on the people who cared for him for a year, and how he had no family left. He was alone.

Yelan got to know him more, always consoling him at night and allowing him to help her with her duties in the day. It wasn't long before people started noticing his passion for medicine. He was brought on as an apprentice doctor. During times he wasn't studying, he'd play with Yelan and share his dreams of going back to Hyon. He had so much pride for his country. He missed his house, even though there probably wasn't anything left of it.

He even asked Yelan to come back with him one day, if ever she got a vacation from her duties as the Queen's personal maid. Yelan laughed at the notion. But Fujitaka insisted that she accompany him; he even told her she'd look absolutely beautiful in the Hyon colors.

It was around then that Yelan started liking him, the clumsy, outgoing, free-spirited Fujitaka. He was everything she looked up to. Smart, humorous, and handsome.

But somehow, Nadeshiko was the one who won him over years later, and Yelan ended up heartbroken and bitter.

"Why must you live in the past?" Yue couldn't stand to see her so sad. He pitied the Queen, he wished there was something he could do to console her. "For too long, you've been dwelling on things that you cannot change. Fujitaka is dead. Nadeshiko is almost there. What more could be done?"

"Even in death, they'll be together!" Yelan let out a cruel sad laugh. "I dream of that bloody woman every night, her beautiful flawless face mocking me. How is it that I could win over the Prince of Tomoeda yet not be able to woo a simple man whom I truly loved?" Her laughter turned into weeping as she sat back down again. She covered her face.

Yue rushed to her side. What could he do to help his Queen? He felt as hopeless as he had all those years ago, when Fujitaka and Nadeshiko first left, fleeing from the angry Hyon King, and disappearing. Yue and Yelan were friends even before she became Queen. But he could never seem to do anything for her.

"I'm such a fool, Yue. I've done nothing but live my life with regrets. I hope Syaoran won't follow me in my footsteps."

He put his hand around her shoulder as she cried.

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The two walked past the different vendors who were advertising their goods and handing out samples. Meiling and Syaoran both had their hoods on. They didn't want to be spotted.

Last year, Meiling had helped Syaoran with the ruby pendant he had given his mother for her birthday. Syaoran had bought a red gem and Meiling found tailors for the chain and the gold casing. Yelan loved it, due to the fact that she loved red, and, to this day, still wears it around her neck. This year, Syaoran hoped he'd be just as lucky. It was sort of ridiculous. What would you buy someone who could buy anything, and everything?

The marketplace always gave him ideas but the atmosphere wasn't working today. He was silent as he brooded over what he had just witnessed in the Rose Garden: Shou and Sakura. A change of pace, and company, might help him forget. But who could forget about Sakura's smile? He burned with envy as the thought of Shou and Sakura together raced through his mind. He heard them laughing, mocking him. He tried to shake the feeling of helplessness, the way he felt when he stood there staring out the window.

Who the hell did Shou think he was? Did Syaoran not say that Sakura was off limits? He wanted to punch something. Questions kept racing through his mind. What were they doing right now? Were they done eating? How does Sakura feel about Shou? How does she feel about him..

"What's wrong? You seem more off than you were at breakfast."

Syaoran stopped by a stall that sold mirrors. He looked at his reflection in one of the mirrors before he started walking again. He needed to get it off his chest. "I found Shou with Sakura."

Meiling frowned. "So?" This wasn't good. Why would he be talking about Sakura when he was with her? This only infuriated her. So that's why he was concerned about Shou's whereabouts at breakfast. He knew Shou had a thing for Sakura. He knew Shou would go after her.

"I don't know." Syaoran shrugged as they walked further into the crowds of people.

"It's not like you to be this concerned about someone." Meiling said. She was trying to coax the truth out of him. Meiling had to know. It was Ayame all over again, and she couldn't take it. "It's not like you to be bothered by what other people do."

"I know," they stopped at a stall of portraits. A young man, at least a year older than him, was painting a portrait of a woman and her son, who posed on the bench in front of him and his canvas.

"And what's with you all of a sudden? You're less like who you were, you know? You never used to talk or hang out with your friends, or go to school, and then all of a sudden you're doing all of those things, _and_ even coming down to breakfast! You _never_ come down for breakfast, or any other meal in that case."

He knew Meiling was going to criticize him. She always did. Even when they were young, she'd be the one to pick out his habits, or the small changes he never noticed. But this was what he wanted. He needed to know, he needed to confirm the things that he was blindly doing. Meiling was like the mirror in Snow White, that always told things as they were, plain and simple.

This is what love is turning him into.

It was obvious, to Meiling at least, that he was changing. He noticed it too. He'd become more sociable, more tolerant, and more patient. He'd stop to notice the little things instead of stay cooped up in his room and not do anything at all.

"Are you listening to me?"

Syaoran nodded. "I am." He turned to face her and smiled. "You're always so honest in your opinions. I really like that about you. It's relieving once in a while to know someone cares."

Meiling blushed as she angrily turned away. "What's up with you? You aren't being your usual self. You're never this laid back!"

Syaoran let out a small chuckle. He looked back at the painter he saw earlier. He walked up to the canvas the man was painting when his jaw dropped. It was the most amazing thing he'd ever seen on paper, well, canvas. The mother and her son looked so alive; the artist captured their smiles so well, anyone could have been fooled. It was like he took that moment, froze it, and put it in a frame. If only things like that were possible.

"Syaoran!"

Syaoran gave his attention back to his cousin, who stood there, hands on her hips. Her hood had fallen off and a couple passersby looked at her. Even though her clothes were covered, one could tell she was not from the village. She wore a touch of make up and her hair was a jet silky black. She wore a very ornate hair clip.

Her outburst had caused the painter to look at them. His eyes moved from Syaoran to the woman who stood by him, looking very unhappy. Suspicious, he thought, as he turned back to his masterpiece.

"Put your hood back on." Syaoran ordered. "I don't want to catch any unnecessary attention."

Meiling obeyed, calming down. It was no use trying to argue with him now.

They waited until the painter was done with his customer. When the mother and her son walked away, satisfied, Syaoran approached him. He was tall and dark messy hair. He had stony grey eyes and a handsome mature look to his face.

"What is your name?" he asked.

The painter's grey eyes fell upon Syaoran. "Tai."

"How long have you been painting?" he asked.

"Since the day I could hold a paint brush." The man started packing up his belongings. He picked up his stool and easel, along with his case of paints and brushes. "Glad you like my art."

"I want you to paint me a portrait." Syaoran spoke in a harsh manner, like he was used to.

But the stranger didn't like his tone. He raised an eyebrow and studied Syaoran. "And who are you to command me?"

Syaoran lowered his hood to reveal his messy brown hair and his bold brown eyes. His expression didn't change. The man smirked. He knew he heard the girl right. She shouted _Syaoran_ earlier. There was only one Syaoran he knew of. He set down his painting easel and his stool.

"The little Prince of Tomoeda, eh? Just because you're royalty doesn't mean you have to act like a little git."

Meiling gaped. This guy had nerve to insult Syaoran in front of his face. She stepped forward as if to defend him, but Syaoran put out his hand and stopped her.

"I apologize, I didn't mean to offend you."

The stranger's smile disappeared. "What do you want?"

"I'm hoping that you can paint a portrait for me. It's a present. I can give any amount you ask."

The stranger hesitated. He weighed his options. Doing a job for the royalty of Tomoeda wouldn't be so bad, money-wise. But on the other hand, he hated the Li clan, and most of all, Syaoran.

The stranger looked at Syaoran with his stone cold eyes, and then switched to Meiling. Something clicked in his head and he realized he'd seen this dark-haired girl somewhere. Syaoran cleared his throat and the stranger's attention went back to the Prince.

"I'll think about it." he said.

"I'll be back here tomorrow. Please make a decision by then."

The painter nodded and pulled his hood over his head. Syaoran turned to leave, leaving Meiling to lag behind. But before she followed, she realized where she'd seen him before. It was earlier that day in the courtyard, he was the hooded figure talking to Emmalyn. Meiling stood there, thinking, before Syaoran called out to her and she ran off behind him.

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Their horses trod back to the castle as they rode side by side. Meiling was quiet the whole way back. The atmosphere was unnerving. Syaoran looked like he was contemplating something. She stole a glance every now and then, but the expression on his face never changed.

The sky was getting dark.

"I worry about you, you know." she said, lowering her eyes to the ground beneath her. If anything, that was an understatement. She did more than worry. Meiling cared about Syaoran so much, that it hurt her.

"What's there to worry about? I'm pretty capable of taking care of myself."

Meiling looked up at his face. It was the same expressionless face he wore whenever someone mentioned something he didn't want to talk about. "You've never talked about anything. You always try to face your problems on your own. Is it so difficult to let someone into your life?"

Her question was met with silence.

Meiling furrowed her eyebrows in frustration. She had all this pent up anger, since the first time she realized her feelings, since she realized her love would never be reciprocated.

"I am the future king of Tomoeda, Meiling. You have to understand. One day, someone will want to take my power away from me, and they'll start with the ones I love: my family and my friends." Meiling looked up at the figure on the horse beside her. Syaoran's face was half hidden by the shadow of the setting sun. She was at a loss for words. He was so mature, so out of her reach. "I already know what it is like to lose. It's painful, so painful that it hurts." Syaoran clenched his fist tight around the reign. "I never want to experience that again."

Syaoran turned to look at Meiling, who was gazing at his figure. And then he did the unexpected. He smiled sincerely. "You are my oldest and one of my closest friends. I don't want to lose you. No, I _can't_ lose you."

She blushed. It felt like her heart was going to burst out of her chest. How she wished it weren't so. She would give anything to stop these feelings, anything to get her to stop loving him. It took all her willpower to turn away from his mesmerizing smile and look forward.

It seemed like forever until they got to the castle. No one had spoke after that. The two got off their horses and walked towards the front entrance; Meiling trailed behind him. But before Syaoran walked in, he waited for Meiling to catch up and did the unexpected for the second time. He suddenly put his strong arms around her small body and pulled her into a hug.

"Thank you for worrying so much about me." he whispered into her ear.

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Syaoran was nowhere to be found that night. Kaya was angry. She stormed down the halls, yelling randomly at servants as they passed by minding their own business. How dare he just leave like that. Kaya was hoping she'd ask him to have dinner with her. But her plan obviously failed.

She turned the corner and a servant with long wavy grey hair caught her eye. She'd seen her before. The servant girl knocked, 3 times, paused, then once on the door. Kaya realized that the door she was knocking on was Sakura's room. Kaya walked up to her. The servant girl look startled.

"Um, is there something I can help you with Miss Kaya?" the girl squeaked.

"What's your name?"

"Tomoyo Daidouji, Miss. I'm Sakura's personal maid, as well as one of the Queen's personal maids." Tomoyo did a small curtsy. But Kaya didn't buy in to her kindness.

"Pft. And just where is Sakura?"

"I'm not sure. I've been coming back here every hour. She isn't around the castle. She might be asleep." The two heard scratching on the door and a faint purr. "Kero?" Tomoyo said, as she sank to her knees to listen more carefully to the door.

Cereberus was pawing at the door, trying to get it open. "Good boy, Kero!" Tomoyo praised. "See if you can open it from the inside!" A few more seconds of scratching and the door was open. As soon as Kero saw Tomoyo, he leaped into her outstretched arms.. and knocked her down. Kaya shrieked. He was a little less than two meters long and had the strength of an elephant. Luckily Sakura and Tomoyo had been training him to be more gentle, especially when greeting people.

"What the hell? She keeps that _thing_ in her room?"

Tomoyo frowned. "He's not a _thing._" Tomoyo sat up and tickled Kero's ears. "How are you? Where's Sakura?" Kero purred in response and licked Tomoyo's cheek affectionately.

Kaya turned away in disgust. Syaoran was missing. Sakura was missing. She put two and two together and clenched her fists in frustration. How annoying. Sakura was so goddamn annoying. She was so plain and simple. Why did she get all of the Prince's attention?

"When you see Sakura, tell her I want to speak to her." Kaya walked away without a second glance and left Tomoyo irritated on the floor with Kero still in her arms. Everyone was so happy-go-lucky, especially when it came to Sakura.

It annoyed her.

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Touya and Yukito finally got to the inn which they stayed in on their first day after leaving the castle. They booked the same room. Touya lay on the bed, twirling a vial full of a transparent purple liquid between his fingers. This was the only thing his father had left him; that, and a piece of paper which Yukito was reading at the table.

"This looks so confusing.. I wouldn't even know where to get half of these ingredients!" He read the recipe for the Cherry-Iris Potion again. "Even the smallest mistake can cause a lot of danger. I wonder how Fujitaka did it."

Touya wasn't really listening. He didn't know what to think, really. He still loved his father. But how could he have done something so selfish as to sacrifice his mother's health for his own gain? Was his love for Nadeshiko not great enough to make him realize?

"We should head out early tomorrow if we want to reach the castle by sundown." Yukito suggested. "I wonder what Yue will say when we get back. I hope he doesn't figure out what we were up to." Yukito stole a glance at Touya. "Are you even listening to me?"

Touya grunted and slowly got up to a sitting position. "Do you remember what he said before he disappeared?"

"Every word," Yukito said sarcastically. "What are you talking about?"

"Sisters.." Touya mumbled to himself. "He said _take care of your sisters._"

"Did he? I couldn't tell." Yukito relaxed his back against the chair and put the recipe on the table. He took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes. He hadn't gotten much sleep lately. "Do you have another sister?"

"No."

"Then maybe you were just hearing things. Maybe you were so focused on what he had just said, that you imagined he said _sisters._" Yukito got up from his chair and walked over to his bed. "Or maybe you just suck."

Touya scoffed and threw a pillow at him.

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Sakura and Syaoran got back at around midnight. They gave each other a nervous smile before parting ways.

Sakura crept up the first staircase, tiptoed through the hallway, then up the next staircase. When she finally got to the third set of stairs, she was tired. Sakura stopped halfway up and sat down. She covered her face with her palms. What had she gotten herself into?

She still felt his warmth around her waist. She pictured their embrace and turned red. "I cannot believe that just happened." she said aloud.

"What just happened?"

Sakura shot her gaze upwards. Staring back down at her was Kaya. Sakura suddenly got up and ironed out her dress with her hands. "Nothing.."

Kaya walked down the stairs to the platform Sakura stood on. The moonlight shining through the window lit both of them. Kaya saw faint grass stains on Sakura's white dress. She also saw how red her cheeks were. Kaya glared. "Where have you been?"

"Why do I have to tell you?"

It was a while before Kaya answered. "What were you doing? Rolling around in the grass or something? You're filthy."

"Why don't you mind your own business?"

Silence.

Sakura tried her hardest not to let her fear show. She stared deep into Kaya's eyes and hoped she looked more convincing than she was feeling. She knew how deeply Kaya wanted Syaoran. But she finally realized it herself that she, too, had feelings for him. She didn't know exactly how far along the lines of love her feelings were, but they were there. She didn't want to hurt her.

Kaya walked closer, but Sakura didn't budge.

And then Kaya's jaw dropped. "You smell like Syaoran!"

"What?"

"His cologne! You smell like Syaoran!"

Sakura's heart sunk. She knew. "I swear, we didn't do anything!"

SLAP.

Sakura froze as she held her cheek where Kaya's hand hit her. It burned. Sakura looked at Kaya as she saw tears streaming down her face.

"You bitch!" Kaya swore. "I try so fucking hard to get his attention, and you don't even have to lift a finger and he's all over you! Do you think this is a game?"

Sakura didn't realize it, but she was crying too.

"I don't know what he sees in you, but when I look at you, I see a simple, stupid girl with brown hair and freakish green eyes. Who the hell are you? Where did you come from? I've never heard of you before, did you come from a noble family?" Sakura stared back at her, not knowing what to say. "Answer me, you whore!"

The two of them stood there, like statues. Unbeknownst to them both, Yuka was peering over the banister at the top of the stairs. The commotion piqued her curiosity as she was changing into her nightgown. She was covering her mouth, wondering if she should intervene or not. Yuka knew what Kaya was capable of; she was the queen of mean, always using blunt words to hurt others.

"I'm sorry!" That was all Sakura could say before she covered her eyes and started crying.

Kaya glared at the girl in front of her, Sakura's apology didn't mean anything. "You're sorry." she spat. "What are you sorry for? For being here? For taking Syaoran away? For being alive? Are you fucking kidding me? You shouldn't even _be_ here! You don't act like a lady at all! I see you lying on the grass doing your homework, or the way you eat with the wrong cutlery. You're sorry for being an eyesore." Kaya turned to walk down the stairs. "I'm not going to lose to you, understand? You can toy around with Syaoran as much as you want, but in the end, you're going to get hurt." And with that, Kaya ran down the stairs and turned into the hallway.

Sakura still stood there, crying, listening as Kaya's footsteps became only echoes. Yuka decided to leave her hiding place and ran down the stairs to Sakura. She took one look into Sakura's eyes and hugged her.

"Don't listen to her." Yuka said softly.

Sakura sobbed uncontrollably and leaned on to her for support. Yuka gently rubbed the place where Kaya hit her. It was red.

"It's true." Sakura cried. "Everything she said is true." Yuka looked at her, puzzled. She waited until Sakura caught her breath and calmed down to explain.

"What is?"

"I'm not supposed to be here."

Yuka wiped Sakura's eyes and cheeks as she took her face into her palms. "What do you mean? You have every right to be here."

Sakura shook her head. "I'm not from a noble family. I'm poor. The only reason I'm here was because the Queen asked me to. I have no money, no mansion or servants or nice clothing. I'm just a villager caught up in a weird situation."

Yuka took a deep breath as she processed this information. Why would the Queen want Sakura to be here when she was poor? It didn't make sense. "What do you mean by _weird situation_?"

Sakura took in a few breaths before she answered. "When we first met, she asked me to 'heal his heart' and 'bring him back to the way he used to be.' I still don't understand what she means."

Sakura had calmed down by then. She was breathing normally, although her eyes were red and her cheek still burned. Yuka sighed. She didn't get it. But it didn't seem like Yuka would get straight up answers tonight.

"I'll walk you back to your room, okay?"

Sakura nodded.

From the closet on the second floor, right beside the staircase which Yuka and Sakura were on, Meiling covered her mouth as she hid. She was coming back from Emmalyn's room when she heard footsteps coming from the hallway. She quickly hid in the closet, hoping it wasn't anyone she didn't want to see.

And to her luck, it was the last person she wanted to see. She hid there from the time Sakura walked up the stairs, to the time when Kaya interrupted her, and she held her breath when Sakura confessed about who she truly was.

She understood now. The Queen had found her, a commoner, who looked identical to Ayame so that Syaoran would be better somehow. Yuka didn't get it because Yuka didn't know of Ayame. But, of course, Yelan would never allow Syaoran to marry commoner, much less a poor person from a low-class family.

But as happy as that made her, she was hurt just as much. That same day that Syaoran had finally opened up to her since Ayame passed away, he had gone out for a night time rendezvous with Sakura. He had only ever snuck out with Ayame. She didn't know what they did, but from the sound of it, it was something pretty big.

Meiling tried to keep her tears from falling. When she felt no one was around, she slid the closet door open and ran back to Emmalyn's room. She didn't want to be alone tonight.


	11. Eleven

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Eleven**

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"Happy early birthday, mother," Syaoran said happily, unveiling a portrait.

It had been two days since Tai, the artisan Meiling and himself met on the streets of Tomoeda City, accepted his job request. It didn't take long for him to paint a full-body portrait of the Queen. It was strange though; Tai only asked for half the price Syaoran was willing to give. His other condition was that Syaoran stay away from Emmalyn. Syaoran had wondered why Tai would request that, but he shrugged his shoulders. The more important thing was that Tai had gotten the painting done earlier than expected. And it was half price; the rich are cheap to stay rich.

It had also been two days since he had kissed Sakura. It always found a way into his mind, the images of her face smiling at him, fireflies in the background. Since then, he had been smiling a lot more.

"It's beautiful, Syaoran!" Yelan exclaimed as she admired her gift. "I'll get someone to replace my old portrait picture in the receiving hall." She gave him a peck on the cheek.

Syaoran walked out of his mother's room only to run into Kaya. "Hello, Prince Syaoran," Kaya giggled as she curtsied slightly. Ever since his meeting with Sakura, he'd been running into Kaya everywhere. At first he thought it was just a coincidence, but now it was getting out of hand.

"Uh, hey Kaya. What's up?"

"I was just wondering if you had a date for Haruka's wedding tonight." She batted her eyelashes.

"Oh. Um," he paused. Syaoran searched desperately for an answer that didn't give away who he was going with, but made her leave him alone. "Yeah." was all he came up with.

"Oh." she replied dejectedly. "Who?"

Crap. How to get out of this one? Tomoyo had told him yesterday that Sakura had been up all night crying. She thought it was because someone form his marriage entourage had said something to her because she was receiving all of his attention. He didn't want to cause Sakura anymore unwanted attention from the rest of the girls. So he decided to be blunt. "Look, Kaya, I'm in a rush right now. I don't have time to chat with you."

Syaoran turned to go before Kaya grabbed the back of his shirt. He turned around with sudden rage, but it ceased when he saw her tears. "Why are you so mean to me?" she sobbed. "I've been living under the same roof as you for almost 3 months, and not once have you ever tried to talk to me. Do you hate me that much?"

Syaoran sighed. Damnit. Tears were an amazing tactic and Syaoran knew he couldn't win against it. He pulled her into a small awkward hug and then pulled away. "I don't hate you, Kaya. Listen, I'm going to the wedding with Sakura. I heard someone hurt her the other day, so I don't want you to tell anyone, okay? Don't hate her because of this. She doesn't deserve it."

Kaya suddenly felt like throwing up. She had already known the answer, she just wanted to deny it. Again with Sakura; what is so good about that girl!

"Why is it always her?" she yelled in an angry rage.

Syaoran tried to calm her down. "Hey, I'll take you out for dinner or something another day, how about that?"

Her face brightened up. "Okay!" Her attitude did a complete 180. "You promise?"

"Yeah, I promise."

"Yay!" she said aloud as she started walking back to her room. Syaoran shook his head and walked to the dining room. He hadn't eaten lunch yet.

In the past two days, so much has changed about him. He was happier, definitely. He somehow found the patience to deal with everyone, no matter their problem, like of like the old days. He wanted to help people. He hadn't felt like this in a long time.

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Touya and Yukito walked onto the training grounds just as the soldiers had finished their sparring practice. They were hardly noticeable within the crowd of smelly men.

But Yue found them within seconds.

"Why did it take you so long?" he demanded. His angered voice startled the two friends as Yue seemingly appeared out of nowhere. His silvery-grey hair was tied back. He wore a metal chest pad and his sword was belted at his side.

"We went to visit a few other friends of my family's." Touya said without hesitation. He had rehearsed the whole way back how to reply to the many possible questions Yue would ask.

They stared at each other, daring the other to take their gaze away. Yue quickly glanced at his brother. Touya was unshaken; Yue couldn't tell whether he was lying or not. On the other hand, Yukito was another story. Yue knew his brother, and the was Yukito was biting his inner lip gave it away. There was something they weren't telling him.

Yue nodded at the two. "Go wash up. You've only missed half of the training." He then turned to Yukito, looking for any shift in his behaviours. "I need you to escort the Prince and his mistresses to a wedding tonight. I can't go because of duties for the Queen. You will go in my place."

"Me?" Yukito gaped in disbelief.

"The both of you."

Yukito raised his eyebrow. "Why?"

Yue shook his head and sighed. "Because I said so. Anymore questions and you'll be shining my armor before you leave."

Yukito shut his mouth and walked away slowly towards the baths. Touya turned to leave but Yue quickly said, "If you're hiding something from me, you can count on the consequences."

Touya only nodded in reply before he, too, stalked off towards the kitchen.

He watched them both. What had they done on their time away from the castle? What was so important that even Yukito, his own flesh and blood, couldn't tell him? Of course, Yue would find out. He had the power and authority to. He would search the things they brought back when the two were away that night to escort the Prince and his party. Hopefully, he would find answers.

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_Come to my room. I need to give you something before we leave for the wedding._

_Syaoran_

A note bearing those words was left for Sakura on her mirror desk. With the help of Tomoyo, Sakura got dressed in a simple white gown and silver flats. She had her hair intricately braided down one shoulder. Her make up was simple. She wore the pearl earrings which Haruka had sent her. Sakura looked simply stunning.

She had never gone to Syaoran's room before. So it wasn't a surprise when Sakura found herself lost. She had been wandering around for quite some time now; she didn't even know where she was.

Sakura walked into a large hallway from a set of super tall double doors, illuminated by the sun peeking through slits in the curtains. Sakura walked further into the room, which turned out to be another receiving room. There was a central staircase that split into two separate staircases that led to either sides. She felt like she shouldn't be here.

Sakura held on tightly to the banister while walking up the staircase. She chose the one on the left and spiraled up to wherever it led. Hopefully, she'd run into a servant or a guard who could help her get to Syaoran's room. It led to a showroom, which a bunch of antiques in glass boxes with descriptions on plaques beside them.

Sakura walked over to one. It was a sword, one of the most magnificent swords Sakura had ever seen. The crafting on the blade was very intricate. She read the description. "The Dragon Sword," she read aloud. "was crafted by the first generation of the Li Family. It is the sword used during the Royal Crowning Ceremony."

Sakura lowered herself to the blade to see what it said, but the sword reflected something that caught her eye. It looked like a person. Sakura quickly turned around to see who it was, but what she saw shocked her more.

On the wall opposite of her was a doorway with it's door open just wide enough for Sakura to see a portrait which hung on the wall. Had her eyes deceived her? Sakura inched closer to the room, holding her breath. She made small and quiet steps, not sure what to expect.

But what she saw was not a mistake. Hanging on the wall of a small 5 meter square room was a portrait of a girl who looked exactly like her. Sakura braced herself on the wall as she noticed more paintings, smaller ones on the desk and wardrobe, of her in various places and poses. Most of them were in the garden underneath the cherry blossom tree. There was a jewelry box in the middle of a desk with the most beautiful jewels, diamond rings, and necklaces.

Sakura knew the pictures couldn't have been her. She had only met the prince a few months ago. How could he have paintings of the two of them when they were younger? Sakura found the strength to walk to the portrait of the woman on the wall. Everything about the two of them, down to the skin color, or the part in their hair, was the same.

There was only one difference: her eyes were brown. _This isn't me,_ Sakura thought to herself. _Who is this?_

Just then, she heard a rustle from afar. Sakura quickly dashed out of the room, tread carefully through the trophy room, and got as far away as she could from the strange place filled with pictures. She didn't realize she had ventured past the sleeping guard into the middle of the southern wing of the castle.

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Touya stalked off alone, looking for a place to be by himself. He really needed to think about things, about what his father said, and what he left behind.

Touya was about to pull our his hair when he bumped into Akira, or rather, Naruku. "You're back?" she said, with a sullen look on her face.

Touya nodded and stared at her.

Naruku lowered her head to look at her feet. "Your mother.." she started. "she's–"

"I know." came Touya's reply.

"How do you know?" Naruku looked puzzled.

"Long story. Can I see her?"

"No," she shook her head. "The Queen buried her yesterday in the royal cemetery."

"What? Why? Only Royals are buried there."

Nadeshiko furrowed her eyebrows. So Touya didn't know he was of Royal descent, or that he was the heir to Hyon's kingdom. If he went back, the tension between the kingdom's would cease! But she would have to tell her master first, before she told Touya the truth. She didn't want to mess up anything.

So Naruku just shrugged her shoulders. And then she remembered the other thing she wanted to tell Touya. "You have to come with me."

"Where?"

"The South Wing infirmary." Naruku looked around cautiously, hoping no one caught sight of them.

"Why?"

"I can't explain it to you.." Naruku turned around and started walking towards the South Wing. "Meet me there in 30 minutes. I'll go there first, you follow in a bit."

Touya nodded.

Thirty minutes later, Touya was making his way down the dark hallway that led to only one room: the secret infirmary. He slowly opened the door to see a small candle lit on the table next to a recently occupied bed that held Nadeshiko. Touya's heart sank at the thought of not being able to say good bye to his mother, but it wept even more for Sakura who knew none of this was happening.

"Naruku?" she whispered.

"Over here," she replied, popping her head out of the curtains in the corner. Touya looked confused, but he approached her anyway and pulled back the curtain.

His heart stopped. "Sakura?" he cried as he ran to the girl's bedside.

"No!" Naruku warned, grabbing his arm and pulling him away. "That's not Sakura!"

"What?" Touya took a closer look. He knew his sister, and this definitely was his sister. There was not one mole, or one strand of hair out of place.

"No, look at this." Naruku handed him a medical report. "Her name is Ayame."

Touya scrutinized the messy handwriting. "She's been here for almost a year."

"So I guess you don't know about her?" Touya shook his head. "Ayame was Syaoran's fiancee. But apparently, she fell ill and died."

"But she's still breathing." Touya obviously stated.

"I know; the Queen lied to him."

"Why would she do that?"

"I don't know," Naruku took the medical chart back from Touya and placed it back on the table. "But now I understand why she chose Sakura as one of the girls Syaoran has to pick from. They look exactly alike."

"What?" Touya yelled. He didn't know anything about the circumstances around Sakura being kept in the castle.

"Shh!" Naruku flailed in panic. "If someone hears us, we're dead!"

Touya looked behind him and the two stayed quiet for awhile. "What do you mean? What does that Syaoran brat have to do with Sakura?"

"You don't know?" Naruku looked at Touya strangely. There was not one person in Tomoeda City who didn't know of the events which were happening right now. "The Prince is turning 18 in a month's time. The Queen had handpicked 8 candidates which Syaoran has to choose his bride from. Sakura and I are two of them."

"You too?" Touya stared in disbelief. So this was the reason Sakura was here. "That's fucking stupid. Why would the Queen pick Sakura just because she looks like this _Ayame_ girl?"

"Well, the Prince went into a slump after Ayame fell sick and supposedly died. Maybe the Queen chose her to help Syaoran get over Ayame being dead."

"Why would she lie to him about Ayame being dead?"

"Ugh! I don't know, stop asking me." Naruku rubbed her temples. She didn't believe how stubborn Touya was. And then she noticed something. "Why do you care so much about Sakura?"

"She's my little sister. Of course I care about her. Jesus, I need to get her away from this place now that our mother's gone."

"She's your sister?" It was Naruku's turn to be shocked.

"Yeah. I came here looking for her."

"Who else knows?"

"Yue and Yukito."

Naruku thought to herself. It was strange. There was someone who was an exact copy of Ayame, and coincidentally this copy's brother was the son of Princess Nadeshiko of Hyon. Then maybe..

"When is Sakura's birthday?"

"April 1st," Touya replied proudly. "She's turning 15."

Naruku's eyes widened as she look at Ayame, and then back at Touya. "Ayame's birthday is April the 1st."

Touya furrowed his eyebrows. The two had come to the same conclusion. "My father said _take care of your sisters _before he disappeared.."

"So it is possible.."

"Could it be?" Touya walked over to the bed and looked closely at the sleeping girl. "She's my sister; Sakura has a twin."

This changed everything. Naruku's heart was beating so fast, she could hear it in her ears. She had to tell her master.

Touya reached into his pocket and pulled out a purple vial. He bent down and opened Ayame's mouth.

"What are you doing?" Naruku whispered as she watched him pour the liquid down her throat.

"My father's potion: The Cherry Iris. It was said to cure everything."

Naruku stared in horror as the last of the liquid disappeared. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"

"I despise my father for what he did to my mother, but I have to take care of the family I have left. He gave this to me to atone for his sin. For some reason, I feel like this is the right thing to do."

They waited a couple minutes but nothing happened.

"I have to go soon." Naruku said. "I need to get ready for a wedding."

"Oh, shit. I forgot." Touya got up and took one last glance at Ayame. "I'm going to that, too. Apparently, Yukito and I are escorting you all."

"You have to pretend like you and Sakura don't know each other."

"Why?"

Naruku really didn't want to explain. "I'm guessing that no one really knows you're here or who you really are, other than the Tsukishiro brothers, right? Or i would have known." Touya raised an eyebrow, but didn't say anything. Of course, Naruku would have known because Master Eriol would have said something. "You don't want to be known to anyone else if you want to disappear with Sakura." This wasn't the actual reason why, but it was the easiest excuse she could think of that Touya wouldn't reject.

Truth was, Naruku didn't want Syaoran to find out, or even worse, the Queen.

Touya sighed and nodded.

As the two left, Ayame's eyes twitched behind the white curtain.

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Syaoran's party had arrived on Haruka's estate in 4 carriages: Touya and Yukito in one, Syaoran coming after them, and the six remaining girls split into two groups of three. Sakura sat in a carriage with Yuka and Akira. They finally got to the entrance and were being helped out of their carriages. Yuka got out first. As Sakura moved to get out, Akira quickly tapped her shoulder.

"Pretend you don't know him." she whispered quickly.

Sakura turned around to look at Akira, confused. "What?"

"Miss," said the man at the door of the carriage. Sakura turned to meet the eyes of her brother, Touya.

Sakura gasped but was shut up when Touya nodded his head curtly. And then Sakura understood. She nodded in agreement and gave him her hand.

The party, led by Syaoran, walked to the entrance hall. Their names were called, one by one, as the walked down the main stair case into the crowd of rich and famous lords and ladies of Tomoeda.

Sakura had never been to one of these parties. She was awed by the vastness of the hall. Of course, it wasn't as big as the castle's, but it was so beautifully decorated, that at times Sakura forgot to breathe. She was mesmerized by the beautiful gowns that other ladies were wearing and felt like she was underdressed. (AN for some reason, I kept picturing that white dress Sakura wore in The Sealed Card during their play..)

Syaoran took a seat at one of the chairs on the raised platform. It seemed that he was the last of the guests to arrive. A man in a black suit, the pastor, cleared his throat, and the hall seemed to quieten down. In a loud voice, he announced the names of the people who sat on the platform.

"Mister and Mistress Kai Muto, parents of the Groom." He directed the crowd's attention to a black-haired couple who smiled and waved. "Mister and Mistress Koichi Takana, parents of the Bride." He then pointed to another couple who also smiled and waved in their chairs. He then introduced a few witnesses and lastly, Syaoran. "And the Prince of Tomoeda, here to verify this wedding, Prince Syaoran." He smiled curtly and nodded to the crowd.

"He's so handsome," Sakura heard a girl whisper to her friend.

"I would do anything to get into his bed," the two girls giggled. Sakura blushed as the thought of her kissing Syaoran appeared in her mind again. It felt like a dream, a really good dream. It was weird how Sakura went from hating him, to liking him.

And then she remembered that picture on the wall. There must be some reasonable explanation for it. Maybe, if she asked Syaoran, he'd give her answers. But there was something at the back of her mind that thought he would get angry if she asked. Sakura returned to her uneasy state.

"Let the crowd make room for the bridal entourage." said the pastor aloud. The crowd split in half, revealing a red carpet on the stone floor which Sakura didn't notice before. She followed those around her and moved to the side. Suddenly, two violinists started playing. Sakura followed the crowd's gazes to the end of the hall, where the doors suddenly opened.

A handsome man wearing sleek tan outfit came out followed by the bridal procession. And finally, Haruka appeared. Sakura forgot about her worries of the castle and smiled the instant she saw her friend. As Haruka neared, Sakura couldn't help but be mesmerized by her beauty. Haruka's beautiful silver hair was intricately woven into a headpiece, slightly masked by her bridal veil. Her wedding dress was a beautiful shade of light pink, and it trailed at least 3 meters behind her. Her bouquet was a mix of bluebells, purple asters, and cherry blossom branches.

As the bride neared the platform, and the man in the tan outfit who Sakura assumed to be the groom, Sakura realized that this couldn't have happened if Syaoran didn't let her go. She remembered how she yelled at him the day Haruka left, calling him names and being rude. She'd have to apologize.

Finally, the music stopped and the pastor started speaking. It was about 5 minutes before the two started making their vows. And finally, the bride and the groom kissed. Cheers spread throughout the hall and lively music started to play as the newlywed couple started walking down the red carpet again.

Sakura waved at Haruka, and Haruka waved back. As she passed her, Haruka said, "I'm glad you came, hopefully you're next!" She winked and continued her walk down the red carpet, leaving Sakura red-faced.

The hall turned back into the party once more and food was brought out to celebrate. Sakura stood at the tables with a plate in her hand and no idea what to eat. She still wasn't used to the rich cuisine, and always preferred soup, bread, and water for her meals.

And then Syaoran came up behind her.

"That was interesting, wasn't it?" he said calmly, smiling to her.

"Yeah. It was. I'm really happy for Haruka."

"Me too." He noticed the empty plate in her hand. "Don't know what to eat?" Sakura blushed a little. Syaoran took the plate from her hand and started filling it up. He gave it back to her, then walked away to the drink table. Sakura followed. She watched him pour a glass of water and what seemed to be a cup of light wine. They walked to one of the balconies and sat down on one of the benches. It was quite warm for a spring night.

Syaoran watched amusingly as Sakura decided what to eat first. She put her fork to her mouth and looked innocently over at Syaoran. He let out a laugh.

"I don't know what I'm eating," she confessed.

"Try anything. Trust me; you'll love it."

So Sakura did. And she did love the food. "Wow." she said. "How did you know I'd like all these things?"

"Just a hunch," he replied coolly.

"Do you want some?" she asked him.

"Could I try a piece of your crepe?"

"What?" Sakura searched her plate for anything that rang _crepe_.

Syaoran laughed, trying not to give in to his senses. He wanted to kiss her. She was so innocently adorable. "That flat bread thing with the strawberries on it."

"No!" She sprang back. "That's my favorite! I'll give you something else." She forked a bit of the meat and hand fed it to his mouth. As their eyes met, she blushed a bit. Syaoran smiled.

"You know, I asked you to come to my room before we came here today."

"I got lost." she confessed.

"Haha, really? Somehow that doesn't seem surprising." Sakura gave him a vicious look as she continued eating. "I wanted to give you something." He reached into his pocket and took out a small box. By this time, Sakura had finished her food and put her plate down. She wondered what he had for her.

Syaoran gave her the box. She opened it to reveal a thin golden chain with two pendants: one was a locket and the other was a diamond ring. Sakura traced her fingers around the locket. She had seen this somewhere before, she was certain. "Where did you get this?" she whispered.

"It doesn't matter. It's yours now."

Sakura held up the ring. It was a beautifully cut diamond. She scrutinized the band. Inscribed inside were the words, _Until my forever ends_. Sakura was confused. What exactly was he giving her? Was this some sort of proposal? But he didn't bend down, or ask the magic question. She looked up at him and hesitated to ask.

Syaoran was smiling at her.

She didn't know what to say, or what to do. He gently reached over to her hands, took the necklace, and put it around her head. It dangled on her dress. "Do you want to dance?" Sakura didn't know how to dance. She was clumsy and had two left feet. But she nodded anyway, not wanting to replace his smile with a disappointed look.

He took her hand and led her back inside. They maneuvered their way through a few couples and found enough space on the dance floor. Syaoran somehow knew Sakura's dilemma; he took her hand and placed it on his shoulder. He took her other hand and held it in his own. He put his left hand behind her back. "Follow me," he said as he winked.

He led her feet, forwards and back, side to side, and twirled her when he wanted to. It was as if Syaoran was controlling Sakura with her strong body, but most of all his smile. Sakura didn't want it to disappear. He was so gentle when he smiled. Sakura could feel his genuine care when he smiled. She fell a bit more for him when he smiled.

She didn't notice the glances she was getting from the members of the crowd. Emmalyn and Meiling were outside, avoiding the happy couple. Kaya witnessed Sakura and Syaoran with fierce eyes, while Yuka just watched. Naruku and Yukito were trying to control a raging Touya.

There were jealous glares everywhere. They wondered who this girl was to be dancing with the handsome Prince of Tomoeda. But Sakura was too busy to notice them. Syaoran's eyes had her. It was like they were dancing in a place where time didn't exist. Her whole life, she'd only known hardship and suffering. But it seemed like all her troubles were so far as they moved weightlessly across the floor.

Little did Sakura know, her troubles were only just beginning.

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Yue tightly closed the door behind him. All in the castle was still. Everyone had gone out. The servants were quietly busy with their duties. The Queen hadn't been well, so she had sent Syaoran in her place to attend the wedding. She was in her room fast asleep.

There was something in the back of Yue's mind bothering him. Where had Yukito and Touya gone for all those days? Why was Yukito lying to him? Yue knew it wasn't right to do what he was going to do, but he needed answers.

Yue spotted the bag Touya used for their travels. He went over to it and opened the flap. Touya hadn't unpacked fully. There was a bag of money, a few toiletries, and a few pieces of paper. He took those out and gaped. The first was a map, his map, to Clow's Garden. He had hidden it in his locked desk drawer. Only Yukito knew how to open it.

Yue's heart beat got louder as he put the pieces of this puzzle together. They were searching for Clow's Garden. Did they find it? He looked at the second piece of paper and he had to sit down. He was staring at a list of ingredients to make a potion. He recognized this handwriting. It was Fujitaka Kinomoto's.

"They found it," he said aloud to himself. Did Touya know the truth then? His mind raced with thoughts of the consequences of the Queen finding out. Yue hadn't been truthful with her. She didn't know about Touya, the first-born Kinomoto. She didn't know he was here.

He recalled the night when Yelan had ordered the capture of Nadeshiko's child. It was two years after Fujitaka and Nadeshiko had eloped. She had sent Yue to their home in Ledaia. It was in June that he left. He traveled for a week and a half.

The sun had set and the Kinomoto family was asleep. Yue scouted the area. Their house was large, about the size of a small mansion. They had no servants, as far as Yue knew. He broke in through an open window and set about to find their child.

He got lucky. The first door he opened held two cribs. He looked back to make sure no one saw him, and then entered the room. He looked at the first crib. A baby girl slept, hugging a small rabbit toy. He looked at the next crib. His heart stopped abruptly when he saw two green eyes staring at him. He didn't move; neither did she. The small girl was on her bottom, holding the sides of her crib. Yue walked over to her. The whole time, her large eyes followed.

"Hello," he whispered. "Do you want to come with me?"

It was as if the baby girl understood. She shook her head slightly, quiet as a mouse. Yue smiled sadly and walked back to the other sleeping baby. He grabbed a blanket and picked her up, gently wrapping her in warmth. And the the emerald-eyed baby started to sob. This was Yue's cue to get out of there.

He hurried down the hall and out the open window, carefully carrying the sleeping baby. He rushed to his horse and got away to the town where he kept the rest of his belongings.

Sonomi Daidouji waited for him at a hotel in the town. She was ready with the carriage and all their bags. Yue hitched the horse to the carriage and rushed Sonomi inside with the baby. They rode off to the castle that night.

Yue never looked back, for fear that Fujitaka would find him. He regretted it ever since. The Queen had hidden her from the court. The Queen named her Ayame. Nadeshiko had told her when they were young that if she had a son, she'd name him Touya; If she had a daughter, she'd name her Ayame.

It wasn't long after that Fujitaka had appeared in the castle. The war was turning for the worst and Yelan had begged him to help Tomoeda. It had been on a medical expedition that Fujitaka had talked about his daughter.

"I am so selfish, aren't I, Yue?" Fujitaka had said when they were alone in a tent. "This war is because I fled with Nadeshiko. Hyon wants their Princess back and all I can do is hide her."

Yue didn't say anything. Fujitaka was right. A part of him wanted to release the information on the whereabouts of Nadeshiko Hyon, but he didn't under strict orders of Yelan herself.

"We had two baby daughters on April the first," Fujitaka said. "But someone took our Ayame. I believe it was someone from the Hyon kingdom, but I don't know. My mind has been coming up with these crazy scenarios and none of them really make any sense." Fujitaka let out a sad laugh.

It had been 5 years before that that Yue stole their daughter. He never told the Queen about Ayame's sister. He never told her anything unnecessary. The Queen had such a broken and revengeful heart. This led her to do things like kidnap her best friend's child.

Did Touya know all this? No, how could he possibly know? He and Yelan were the only ones who knew about it. So what was the reason he went to find Clow's Garden? Maybe to find a way to cure his mother, that was the best bet. He knew Touya was working hard for his family.

So Touya found the recipe for his father's famous potion. What would he do with it, now that Nadeshiko was dead?

Yue reached into the bottom of the bag and found an empty vial. Curious, he took a closer look and brought it up to the light. He saw traces of a purple liquid. "Wait.." Yue suddenly realized that Yukito knew where Nadeshiko was being hidden. He cursed himself for being so stupid to trust his brother with such important information. "Ayame was being held there, too."

With Nadeshiko gone, Ayame was the only one that Touya could have used the potion on. Yue dropped everything and raced out the door. He ran towards the South wing, towards the secret medical room.

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"Well, wasn't that romantic?" Touya scoffed. He was depressed seeing Sakura dance with the Brat Prince.

Sakura smiled sweetly and nodded. "Why don't you like him?"

"Are you dumb? He's a prince! And he's not a very smart one. He's always got that dumb angry look on his face."

"Kind of reminds me of someone I know.." Sakura hinted as she took another sip from her glass. The siblings were by one of the tables, a few paces apart so if they were seen, they could easily slip away from each other. "I missed you, you know. Where did you go?"

"Places." Touya couldn't tell her about their father and their mother just yet, not in front of so many people. "Please don't tell me you like him."

"I don't." Sakura had finished all of her water and went to pour her another cup when someone bumped into her and pushed her down. "Ouch!"

"I'm sorry," the girl said sarcastically, as she and a friend of hers laughed. It was the two Sakura had overheard earlier. "I didn't mean to get _too close_. I'll _stay away_ from you from now on."

Sakura looked up at the girl as Touya helped her up. "What the hell do you think you're doing?"

"Oh, another handsome one," said the other girl. "This simple girl seems to be getting all their attention."

Girl One got even angrier. She pointed a finger at Sakura. "You think you're all that just because you've got gorgeous boys attending to your every need? Well I'll tell you something: there are prettier and better girls out there, especially for Syaoran. Just because he likes you now doesn't mean he'll like you once I'm done with him."

From the other side of the large hall, Syaoran noticed the commotion. He walked over to the group and was shocked to see Touya and Sakura together. "What's going on?"

"Syaoran!" Sakura looked at Touya and gave him a look. Touya nodded his head. _Be careful what you say._ They didn't want their cover blown.

"What's going on?" he asked for the second time, more sternly than the first.

"Your highness," said Girl Two, as she curtsied.

"These two were causing trouble for Sakura," Touya said without looking Syaoran in the eye.

Syaoran turned his gaze towards the two girls he didn't recognize. A small crowd was gathering around them. "Is this true?" No one replied. Syaoran continued. "This is a wedding," he scolded. "A wedding of one of my dear friends. I will not let you ruin it with your petty schemes. Either you stop your foolishness or leave."

The girls looked at each other before disappearing into the crowd. Syaoran then turned to Sakura and Touya. "Who are you?" he asked Touya.

"I was sent here along with Yukito to accompany you." Syaoran noticed he didn't add any titles or honorifics. He knew it; he didn't like this guy.

"I meant why are you with her?"

Touya glanced at Sakura. "She is one of your mistresses, is she not? I am to protect you and those of your party. I saw those girls giving her trouble and I aided her." His explanation was only half truthful. He had been monitoring Sakura all night, from the time she left the carriage until now.

Syaoran glared at him, and Touya glared back. Sakura felt the tension. "Um, Syaoran!" she said suddenly. "Could you come with me? I need a little fresh air."

Syaoran followed her out onto the balcony. He was glad to get her away from Touya, the unknown man who always seemed to be there. Sakura leaned on the railing and looked out at the scenery. There was no one but the two of them there. Everyone else was inside.

"Look, there's something I need to tell you." Syaoran didn't know if it was the sudden appearance of Touya that made him decide, but he had this sudden urge to tell her how he felt.

She turned to face him, her green eyes looked into his. "There's something I need to ask you, too." she replied. She had thought about it, and it bothered her. She needed to know who that was in the pictures in that room. Why was the resemblance so uncanny? Why were those pictures even there? She played with the necklace Syaoran had just given her.

"Okay, you first." Syaoran placed a stray strand of hair around her ear. She was so beautiful right at that moment. The full moon shone brightly in the sky, illuminating them in a bright peaceful light. Whatever Sakura had to tell him, it would be fine. As long as she felt the same, Syaoran wouldn't be hurt. He had felt it, when they were dancing. She wanted him.

"No, you go first." Sakura didn't want to offend Syaoran before he told her what he wanted to say. It was safer to let him say the things he needed to say first. How was she going to ask him? Was she bluntly just going to ask who the girl in the pictures was? She was having second thoughts. Or maybe she was just overthinking. She couldn't live with not knowing.

Syaoran sighed. "You know something?" he asked, still making eye contact.

Sakura nodded.

"You changed me." Sakura held her breath. "I was, I was different before you came. Did you notice? I never talked to anyone really. I almost never went out of my room. I refused to go to school." Syaoran chuckled. Sakura realized she liked the sound of him laughing. "That's so childish of me, not wanting to go to school. I was selfish and stubborn, to put it bluntly. But you changed me."

He waited for her to say something. "Um, is that a good thing?"

Syaoran laughed again. This made Sakura smile. "Of course it's a good thing, don't you like the way I am right now?"

Sakura nodded. She adored who he was. He was open and understanding. Sometimes he was quick to react, but he always did it for the right reasons. Before she knew it, she had fallen in love with the Prince. He had a kind heart, even though he didn't always show it.

Syaoran took Sakura's hands in his own, bent down slightly, and kissed her. She received it willingly and breathed when their lips parted.

She couldn't ask him tonight, not after all that he's said. For some reason, Sakura thought he'd get mad. And that was a chance she didn't want to take. She wanted to see him happy. Maybe the pictures of the girl would somehow erase in her memory, and she would be able to live happily without ever asking him. But one thing was for sure, she wasn't going to make Syaoran mad tonight.

As Syaoran looked at the girl in front of him, he saw flashes of the times she was seen with Shou and Touya. How angry and jealous he was, that she was happy with another man. But he wanted to show her that she could be happy with him, that she would only need him in her life. He knew he was a selfish man, and because he wanted her, he would have her.

Syaoran led her to a more secluded part of the balcony. There was a pathway leading away from the mansion into the garden. They walked until they reached a beautiful centerpiece statue. Sakura admired the greenery before Syaoran gently grabbed her hands again.

"I don't think I've felt this way about anyone before," he said to her, using a soft voice.

Sakura took a deep breath. She knew what he was going to say now. And she would return his words with heartfelt words of her own. She already knew she loved him. It was a strange feeling, a lot different than the love she held for her brother. She wanted to spend forever in his strong arms, and wake up every morning to his kiss.

"I love you." he said as he pulled her into a caress.

Sakura was about to return his words but he continued.

"I love you so much, Ayame."

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(A/N) HAHAHAHAHAHA ! Ouch.

If you notice, the chapter numbers don't really match up, but don't mind that. I've revised the beginning chapters to (hopefully) make it less confusing. I was reading through my old chapters only to realize some things don't match up, so I fixed that too. So yes.

Thanks for all your support, guys (: You make me HAPPY. Hope you enjoyed this chapter as much as I had fun writing it.


	12. Twelve

Fanfiction written by **Mae Vargas**; (Most) Characters don't belong to me.

Few things to clear up:

No, Ayame is not blood related to Syaoran in any way. She is Sakura's twin sister. She just grew up with Syaoran because she was taken from her home and brought up in the castle.

As I was writing this chapter, I realized that Eriol had to be at least 10 years older than Touya, but he's supposed to be young looking.. and so I fixed my confusion by pretending that because he's Clow's successor, he has the power to live longer and age slower :P Oh, the crazy explanations I come up with. But yeah, Eriol's around 30, but he looks like he's 18.. That makes sense, right ?

I forgot to mention this in an earlier chapter, but the reason why Ayame also had Nadeshiko's "illness" was because Fujitaka made his wife his "sacrifice" when Nadeshiko was pregnant with the twin sisters. Since Ayame was born first, she received some of the side affects, but Sakura didn't. And the reason Touya isn't going to succumb to the illness, even though he "sacrificed" himself, is because Fujitaka had already done it, and it won't work if someone has already "sacrificed" their life for the same person.

Cool ? Cool.

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_The Iris & the Cherry Blossom_  
**Chapter Twelve**

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_The Collections of Clow: The Silver Soldier_

_You could find no other soldier more brave than Silver._

_After every battle, he would stand in the midst of the destruction that was caused, clad in his unscathed silver armor, hence his nickname, and breathe in the stench of victory. He fought courageously and without restraint. He had no weaknesses on the battlefield. Nothing phased him. The only thought that kept him going was returning home to see the smile on his Queen's face._

_She was as beautiful as a flower. Her face was as pale as the moon, but her smile lit up the room like the sun. He loved her, with all his heart. He would do anything for her. But she was the Queen, and he was only a soldier._

_He knew her faults, and accepted them. She was only human, a being bound mistakes. She made the wrong choices sometimes, but he was always there to help her out of her trouble. She might have taken him for granted sometimes, but he lived for her smile. He won his battles only for her._

_But she loved someone else. And just like him, it was someone she wasn't supposed to love. This man was his friend and ally. And even though it pained him to know, he continued to love the Queen with all his heart._

_One day, the man whom the Queen loved disappeared. She was heartbroken. The Queen couldn't function properly without him. And although his competition in love had gone, he was uneasy knowing the Queen was unhappy. Silver tried his best to keep her happy, but at times he found himself taking charge of the kingdom in her stead, while she kept herself in her room, mourning her loss. _

_It was a while before he showed up again, into their lives. He returned, with no explanation of where he went, or what he did. The only clue was a gold ring around his left ring finger. When the Queen noticed this, she fell even deeper into despair. Her heart turned cold and she became ruthless and merciless. She treated everyone with anger and turned away the problems of her people. _

_Silver did not know what to do. Where had his Queen gone? Where was her open and understanding heart? She never smiled. So Silver took it upon himself once again to make her happy. He tried even harder to please the Queen, even though his efforts bore no fruit. _

_Again and again, the Queen asked her love where he went and what he did, but he replied with no direct answers, and only said, "It's best to let things be sometimes."_

_But the Queen couldn't take that as an answer. She was fed up with his roundabout replies and his carefree smiles. She had been a mess without him. And she was a mess even with him. She knew he had gotten married, and had found a woman he loved. But she was the Queen!_

_And so, that night, she called upon her most trusted servant, Silver. In her room, he found her crying on the floor. He was the only person she would show her vulnerable self to. "If I can't have him, then no one can!" she yelled as she wept. "Kill him!"_

_And so the next morning, Silver took his friend to a mountain. It was an excursion to gather a flower that would help with the Queen's health, at least that's what the excuse was. Atop the mountain, Silver told his friend his true purpose._

_The man smiled. "I knew this would come." He bent down and accepted his fate. "Sometimes, it's best to let things be."_

_Silver couldn't forgive himself. Oh, the terrible things people do for love. It was the driving force that allowed people to sacrifice, and to be sacrificed. He loved the Queen. And he would always love her, despite her faults and errors. He would do anything for her, even kill his friend for her._

_Atop the mountain he had won his battle and killed a man he knew as his friend. But he could not stand to watch the destruction he had caused. This time, he did not breathe in his victory. He did not win this battle. And he carried his loss until the end of his life._

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Yue ran at full speed down the hallway. He didn't stop to take any breathers. The Guards who watched over the entrance to the South Hall moved out of the way. He got to the door to the secret medical room. He unlocked the door.

The silver-haired Captain glanced around. The empty bed that Nadeshiko had lain in was neat and tidy. Then there was the bed that Ayame slept in, hidden by hanging white drapes. He walked slowly and parted the curtains.

He almost had a heart attack when he saw a pair of brown eyes staring at him.

"Yue." Ayame, whispered as she smiled. Her voice was raspy and harsh. She was sitting up against the backboard, the white bedsheets wrapped around her.

"What in Clow's name.." He rushed over to the fridge and poured her a glass of water, trying to keep his hands steady. She was awake. She was healed of the illness that Nadeshiko had. Fujitaka's potion had worked. He brisked over to Ayame's bedside and gave her the water. "Drink," he commanded.

She did just that and drank the whole cup. "Thank you," she smiled.

"How long have you been awake?"

"I'm not quite sure, an hour or so?" She held her hair in her hands. "How long have I been asleep? My hair wasn't this long the last I remember."

"It's been almost half a year. You succumbed to the illness your mother had."

"My mother?"

Yue nodded. There was no point in lying to her now. He had always liked Ayame, and he cared for her like he would a daughter. After all, it was he who caused her all this suffering; he took her away from her real parents. He held so much guilt in his heart.

"Your mother passed away just a few days ago."

Ayame furrowed her eyebrows. "But the Queen said I was rescued from burnt-down village.. I don't understand."

"No. You were taken from your mother. But she was here, and she died."

Ayame looked so confused. She looked up at him. "Where's Syaoran? I need to see him."

"He's at Haruka's wedding."

"Haruka? The one in my class? She's getting married?" Ayame held her head in her hands. "What happened while I was asleep?"

"I'm scaring you," Yue suddenly realized. "I'm sorry. You just need to get better, and then we will update you on everything that has happened."

"I don't want to stay here.." she whimpered. "I don't want to be alone.."

Yue smiled with kind eyes as he nodded. "Don't worry, I'll take you to see the Queen. She is in her room right now." Yue took off his cloak. "Wear this. Do you think you can walk?"

Ayame nodded as Yue helped her out of the bed. She stumbled at first, not having used her legs in over 6 months, but she found her strength again. Holding onto Yue's hand, Ayame took her first step out of the room and, unbeknownst to her, into an incredible mess she couldn't have predicted.

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Syaoran was sitting down underneath the large statue in the center of the garden in Haruka's backyard. He held his cheek, still burning from the immense hit Sakura had given him before she ran away crying. How could he have been so dumb?

"Sakura.. her name is Sakura, damn it! How could I fuck up like that?"

He cursed Clow's name aloud as he drowned himself in his bitterness.

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Sakura was in a carriage with Touya. They were on their way home. She cried in his lap. The siblings didn't say anything. Touya already knew it had something to do with Syaoran.

He had watched them when they left him there at the table inside. He had turned away when he saw them kiss. He already knew. Sakura liked the arrogant Prince. How dare he make his baby sister cry.

Syaoran had hurt her. And badly. He had never seen Sakura cry so much. Even though their mother was gravely sick, Sakura had always managed to keep a calm face. But she was crying so much, he felt like he had just gone swimming in his clothes.

Touya patted her head and continued to look out the window. He didn't ask questions. She would tell him in time. She would tell him when she was ready.

It didn't take long to get to the castle. Touya helped her out of the carriage and through the castle doors just as Yue was walking down the stairs. Touya froze up as they met each others gaze. Touya still held Sakura by his side, her eyes were downcast.

Yue frowned. It was a good thing Ayame wasn't with him. He had just come from escorting her to the Queen's room. He didn't want to cause any more commotion than the day had already given them. By the redness in Sakura's eyes, he could tell that she didn't need anymore confusion either. "I need to speak with you," he called out to Touya from the staircase.

Touya only nodded. "I'm going to escort the lady to her room."

"Take no detours. This is important." Yue reached the bottom of the steps and turned left into the hallway that led to his quarters.

Touya guided Sakura down the many hallways and up the numerous staircases to her room at the far end of the secluded wing of the castle. Tomoyo was there waiting her her. As soon as Sakura saw her, her tears came back. The two exchanged glances.

"Change into your nightgown," Tomoyo said, after wiping Sakura's tears. As Sakura left for the washroom, Tomoyo turned to Touya. "What happened?"

"I didn't ask. It has something to do with the Brat Prince, though. I'm sure of it. She hit him before she came looking for me." Tomoyo had known about Sakura's brother. Sakura had accidentally let it slip when she was updating Tomoyo about the happenings while she was away escorting Eriol to the castle.

Touya knew about Tomoyo, always seeing her and Sakura together. Sometimes, she would drop by Yue's room delivering his mail and things. Yukito had also told him about her, saying she was a good person. Touya liked her, even though this was the first time they were talking.

"It always has something to do with him." Tomoyo shook her head. "Are you going to stay?"

"No, I have business to attend to. Take care of her for me."

Tomoyo nodded as she slowly shut the door. Touya turned around. There were butterflies in his stomach since Yue had told him they needed to talk. He couldn't shake the feeling. Touya had really wanted to visit Ayame before he had done anything else, but Yue said no detours.

The thought kept recurring in his mind: how was he going to tell Sakura about all that has happened? How was he supposed to tell her that he had spoken to their father, and that their mother had died, and now she had a twin sibling? There was so much to take in. Sakura's brain would definitely explode.

He sulked away, down the stairs, not noticing Eriol, whom he bumped into.

"I'm so sorry!" Touya apologized as he lent Eriol, who had fallen to the floor, a hand.

"No, it's fine. I was daydreaming while I was walking." Eriol gave Touya one of his smiles. As their hands touched, an extremely warm feeling overcame Eriol. He was reading into Touya's most inner thoughts and wants. Eriol stared at Touya, blinking. "What's your name?"

"Touya," he replied, eying the stranger suspiciously. "You are?"

"Just a servant of the kingdom, like you." Eriol replied broadly. He nodded then continued on. Touya looked back at the blue-haired man before he, too, made his way down to Yue's quarters.

Before he opened Yue's door, he took a deep breath in. What exactly was waiting for him, he didn't really want to know. The butterflies in his stomach were restless and he was anxious. _Another deep breath_. He turned the door knob.

Yue sat in an armchair near his fireplace, his head in his hands. He didn't even look up when Touya entered. Touya shut the door behind him and walked to the chair across from Yue, sitting down as quietly as possible.

It was a few moments before he spoke. "Ayame woke up." he murmured, his gaze fixed on the floor.

Touya's eyes widened. "It worked?"

Yue's head shot up and he glared. "What were you planning? What do you think is going to happen now that the Princess has awoken? The Kingdom believes she is dead!"

"But she is my sister–"

"It does not matter who she is! What do you think you were doing?" Yue stood up and walked to his window. He remembered the dumbstruck look on Queen Yelan's face as Ayame walked in. "There are things you don't know about, Touya. Secrets and lies, things that shouldn't be meddled with." _Sometimes it's best to let things be.._

"She is my sister! My father told me to protect what is left of my family!"

Yue spun around. "You should have told me!" he yelled. "You shouldn't have kept these things from me! I am not your enemy! You should have consulted me first, you don't understand what you've just done!"

"Then explain! What did I do?"

Yue rubbed his face before he sat down again, slowly breathing and letting out his anger. He spoke with a calm voice. "You've just awoken the Princess of Hyon. She was Prince Syaoran's fiancee, until she succumbed to the illness your mother had."

"Then isn't that a good thing? The brat can marry Ayame, and then there will be peace within Hyon and Tomoeda, right?"

"No. Your mother ran away with a Tomoedan. This is why we're at war. Your mother was the heir to the Hyon kingdom. What do you think Hyon will do, when they find out we married their next heir to our Prince? That is why when Ayame fell into a coma, the Queen lied and said she passed away. Hyon doesn't even know they have an heir."

Something clicked in Touya's brain. "But doesn't that mean that I am.."

"Yes, you are a Hyon Prince. And Sakura, being your sibling, is also an heir to the Hyon throne. If we don't work this out properly, the war could become worse. Many lives are at stake here. Yelan doesn't even know about your existence."

"But she knows about Sakura?"

"Yes. When we stumbled across your home in the forest, we didn't actually get lost. We were looking for your mother. For so long, we've been trying to come to agreement with the Hyon kingdom, and we found that the only way to do so was to return their Princess. When the Queen found Sakura, she also found your mother, and realized that Ayame was a twin.

"Your mother eloped with Fujitaka, a Tomoedan man. Yelan hid them both in our kingdom, to save them from the wrath of Nadeshiko's father, the King of Hyon, and also your grandfather. If Hyon finds out about Ayame, that will give them even more reason to fight. Do you understand?"

Touya nodded his head. He turned pale listening to the story of his parents. It made a little more sense, about why they lived so far from any central villages. Their family was being hidden, so that his mother and father could continue their forbidden love.

"We tried to nurse your mother back health, but it didn't work. Her illness was one we couldn't cure. The reason why Yelan took Sakura into this castle was not to heal Syaoran's heart, but she was to be used as a peace offering to Hyon. Yelan was planning to send her back to where she belongs."

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Eriol waited by the window at the end of the hallway near Sakura's room. He knew Tomoyo was there. He had to speak to her again.

Eriol worked for no one but Clow's will. Along with his power to see the deepest desires of a person, he was given a task. He held in his hand the original copy of _The Collections of Clow._ He opened the book. The pages were empty.

It was his job to write the next story. He was the successor of Clow's will. But for his task, he needed the pen which Clow had originally used, to fill the pages of the empty book he held in his hands. For generations, the pen, disguised as a golden key, was passed down from successor to successor, until his father, that is.

When his father became ill, the two of them moved to a secluded place on the border of the Hyon and Tomoedan kingdoms. Of course, his father was not his biological father. He had been adopted by the man, not knowing of the power which his adoptive father had possessed. At that time, Eriol did not even know of the power which the key held. One day, the King of Hyon and his entourage were passing through their small little village. Everyone offered their most valuable possession to him. Not knowing what is was for, Eriol had kindly offered the key while his father was sick in bed.

Not until his father passed away did he learn of his important task. On his deathbed, his father had told him that he was to become the Great Sage, and he was the one to choose the leaders of the next generation. He was also to write the next story in Clow's book. Supposedly, it would come to him in a dream or vision, and it would more or less tell the events of the future. But Eriol had already unknowingly lost the key. And that was why he was searching for it.

He traveled to Hyon in search of the key, only to find that the King had given it to his daughter, Nadeshiko. Eriol tried to get it back, but she had disappeared with a man from the Tomoedan kingdom. And before he knew it, the two kingdoms were at war.

His only goal was to find the key, which was why he was searching so desperately for her. He became interested in Yelan when he found out that Fujitaka was seen aiding her soldiers in the battlefield. Eriol had known from an informant that Nadeshiko had run away with him. So he made frequent visits to the Tomoedan castle, to see if it would lead him to Nadeshiko, and his golden key.

But that turned out to be a bust, and he ended up at square one when Fujitaka died. All seemed lost until he met Ayame, who bore a suspicious resemblance to the Princess of Hyon. But that didn't go too well when Ayame had apparently died.

Eriol brooded over his empty book. He tried to fit the pieces together. When Naruku told him Nadeshiko was being kept in the infirmary, he had her check if she had the key. But she didn't. Eriol had also found out that Ayame was indeed, the daughter of Nadeshiko. But not only that, Nadeshiko had two other children. Maybe one of them had the key which he needed.

Eriol sighed and turned to Sakura's door, which was about 7 meters away from him. Tomoyo still hadn't come out. He wasn't going to get his answers by sitting around and waiting for Naruku to gather information. He was going straight to the source. And who better to ask than the maid who clothed Sakura? Tomoyo would definitely know if she held the key he needed.

He also hadn't talked to her in a while, and he had to admit, he missed her.

And so, Eriol turned back to look out the window and patiently waited.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Ayame sat upright on the cushioned chair, wrapped in a warm blanket. A plate of food was on the table next to her. Nadeshiko sat on her bed, wondering what she was going to do.

"Is Syaoran doing well?" Ayame asked.

"He is fine. Although, he was very lonely without you."

Ayame smiled. She hoped he still looked the same, as handsome as ever. She couldn't wait to see him.

"Ayame," Yelan started. "There are many things that have changed while you were in a coma. I didn't think you would wake up. I told him you were dead, so people wouldn't interfere with your treatments. Your mother didn't recover, so I didn't think you would."

This shocked Ayame, but she didn't show it. "It's alright. I'm okay now. That's all that matters."

Yelan sighed. What was she going to tell everyone? But that wasn't what worried her most. It was Eriol, the Great Sage. He was in her castle, poking his nose into her business. She didn't know where his loyalty lied, and she couldn't afford to take chances. One mistake and it could be the end of Tomoeda. Her forces were already exhausted from the battles that were being fought, unbeknownst to most in the kingdom. They were still at war, after all.

She also worried for Syaoran. It was by mistake that Syaoran had met Ayame, and ever since then they were inseparable. She only wanted her son to be happy, so she let him play with Ayame. Before she knew it, the two were in love with each other. She couldn't possibly stop them; she didn't have the heart to. Yelan know all to well what it was like to not have the one you love. So she let them be engaged, hoping no one would ever find out Ayame was a Hyon Princess.

Ayame didn't know about her birthright. Ayame thought she was a part of Tomoeda. She didn't know she was a princess by blood. Yelan sighed. She stared at Ayame, hoping it'd be some kind of dream, but it wasn't. She knew Eriol was looking for Nadeshiko, and it wouldn't be too long before he found out the truth about Ayame, if he didn't already know.

Ayame sat there, not asking questions. It was strange, Yelan thought. She expected Ayame to question her about why she lied, and about what had happened, but Ayame didn't speak about anything other than Syaoran.

"When will he be home?"

"I'm not too sure."

"Okay."

The rest of the night passed in silence.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Syaoran got back to the castle at around 3 in the morning. His eyes were red. He walked straight up to his room and shut the door. He took off his clothes and didn't even bother to change into his night clothes. He curled up in his blankets, naked, and fell asleep.

He woke up at noon, when the maid brought in his brunch. She ran out, bright red, when Syaoran got up, bare, and thanked her.

He put on a shirt and pants and ate at his table quietly, staring out the window every now and then. He expected to see Sakura down by the pond, underneath the cherry blossom tree, studying like she always would, but she was nowhere to be seen. How was he going to fix this mess?

Sakura was different. She was headstrong and stood up for what she believed in, like her friends. She was unpredictable. Her smile was always so genuine. Syaoran pushed his plate away, suddenly losing his appetite.

He went into his bathroom and took a long dip in the steaming hot water. As he got out, he found a familiar sight outside his bedroom window in the garden courtyard. A girl was there, brown hair braided to the side, wrapped in a white long dress, sitting on the bench underneath the cherry blossom tree. She was reading a book.

Syaoran's heart stopped. He had to apologize. He had to fix things with her right at that moment, or else he would lose her. Syaoran quickly changed and ran out to meet Sakura in the garden.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Sakura sat at the dining table with Yuka and Emmalyn. It was strange, but Sakura somehow found comfort in their presences. They had seen what had gone down the night before. Emmalyn didn't seem to mind, but then again she wasn't in love with the Prince. Yuka, on the other hand, was a little jealous, but she accepted it. Syaoran liked Sakura. There wasn't much she could have done to change that. Yuka found it quite nice to have someone confide in her. She had gotten quite close to Sakura since the day she found her crying in the stairwell after her encounter with Kaya.

The three ate breakfast together, occasionally talking about things other than Syaoran.

Meiling suddenly walked in. "Oh, Em, that's where you were. I was looking for you." She glanced at the company Emmalyn was with and frowned. She, too, saw what happened the night before. She was with Emmalyn outside, the same time Sakura and Syaoran were talking. Unlike Yuka, who only saw what had happened, Emmalyn and Meiling heard what they said, too.

She looked at Sakura, who was picking at her food sullenly. "Seriously, Sakura?" A sudden rush of anger coursed through her. Sakura looked up to face her fiery red eyes. "Ugh! Just looking at you makes me sick! Just tell him how you feel! You two obviously like each other! I don't understand what's stopping you!"

"You heard him yesterday, Mei. He called her Ayame! She can't just pretend like nothing happened." Emmalyn frowned. Syaoran was such a stupid boy. How in the world could he mistake Sakura for Ayame? Sure, they looked exactly the same, but their personalities were way different. Sakura was modest and humble, unlike Ayame who secretly flaunted her riches and her intelligence.

"But still, if you love him, you love him. Don't lose your chance.." Meiling stopped talking. Emmalyn knew she was holding back tears. It had taken a lot of courage for Meiling to say what she just said; to acknowledge Sakura as the one Syaoran loves and to accept it, despite the feelings she held for Syaoran.

"Who is Ayame?"Sakura said out of nowhere, in a voice barely audible. "Is she the girl in the pictures, the one who looks exactly like me?"

Both Meiling and Emmalyn stared at her, wondering where she saw these pictures. Yuka didn't know who Ayame was. She, too, was asking that question in her head.

Meiling and Emmalyn exchanged glances. "Do you really want to know?" Emmalyn asked. Sakura nodded her head. Meiling sighed. "Alright, but we have to go to the South Wing."

"We aren't allowed there," Yuka reminded them.

"Well, if you want to know who she is, you'll have to go to the South Wing."

Emmalyn stood up, followed by Yuka. Sakura remained in her seat. Meiling bent down and spoke to Sakura in a soft voice. "You'll never understand why he mistook you for Ayame unless you go there. It might help you make your decision." Sakura looked up and nodded. She didn't understand why Meiling was being so nice to her, but it assured her.

The four girls snuck their way past the guards somehow. It wasn't long before they were in the room with the two spiral staircases which Sakura had been in before. She knew where they were going.

Meiling opened the door to what Sakura called "the Trophy Room."

"This was Ayame's room," Meiling stated. "But since she passed away, we've used it for storage, as you can see by all the stuff that wouldn't be in a normal room." The four girls looked at all the shiny objects and plaques, tables and chairs; and then there was the ceremonial sword in the middle of the room. Meiling pointed to the room on the side, with all the pictures in it. "That was her study. But all the pictures of her in the castle are now stored there."

Yuka gasped when she saw the life-sized portrait hanging on the wall. "She looks exactly like Sakura."

Sakura walked up to the portrait of the look-a-like, running a finger over Ayame's smile. It was like looking into a mirror, but seeing brown eyes instead of green. "Who is she?" Sakura asked. She didn't really want to know the answer, but her heart needed to know. She needed to understand Syaoran before she could judge him, and hopefully forgive him.

"She was Syaoran's fiance. She passed away around 6 months ago." Sakura's heart sank. Yuka stared disbelievingly at Meiling. She had never heard of Syaoran having a fiance, and obviously neither did Sakura.

"How did she pass away?"

"She just fell sick one day and didn't wake up. I'm not quite sure, the physicians didn't even know what was wrong with her. She was kept in her room most of the time, and then she died. There wasn't a public burial though." Emmalyn said, trying to read the look on Sakura's face.

"Why do we look the same?" Sakura asked the question they've all been wondering, but didn't have the courage to say aloud. Why did Ayame and Sakura look alike? Was it possible that two humans, not being related, could have that much in common physically?

When no one answered, Sakura asked another question. "Does he still love her?"

The other three girls exchanged sad glances at each other while Sakura kept her gaze on the portrait. It was possible, that Syaoran still loved Ayame. After all, he mistook her for the brown-eyed girl at Haruka's wedding.

Sakura's heart was crying. Her eyes were closed. She couldn't bear to look back at her friends for them to witness her brokenheartedness. It was all too bittersweet. She hadn't liked him at first, but he grew on her. All the kind things he did for her, like Kero, and going out of his way to make her happy, they were just things he thought he was doing for Ayame, not for her, Sakura. She felt somewhere that all this time, Syaoran was thinking of his fiance. Despite knowing this, she still couldn't shake the feelings she had for him, nor could she forget his embrace.

She couldn't be strong anymore. Sakura slid to the ground, letting out soft sobs, as Yuka ran to her side to comfort her.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Syaoran ran as fast as he could, down the hallways, jumped the staircases, and finally made his way to the courtyard. She lay there, sideways on the bench, reading a book with a red cover. Her long brown hair was braided and hanging over her shoulder. Syaoran couldn't see her face, but he knew who it was.

He summoned all his courage and took a step out into the greenery, and towards Sakura.

Syaoran was a few steps away when the girl looked up. He came into contact with a pair of brown eyes. Syaoran faltered. His feet stopped and he squinted. The girl before him smiled, and sat upright on the bench. _Sakura?_ Syaoran thought to himself. _No, it can't be.._

"Syaoran," said a soft voice behind the smile of the brown-eyed girl. "I knew you'd come by sooner or later."

Syaoran didn't say a word. The girl looked confused. She stood up and took Syaoran's hands in her own. "It's me, Ayame, don't you remember?"

He was about to faint. "Ayame?" He got dizzy all of a sudden. "Is this a dream? Aren't you dead?"

Ayame let out a small and polite giggle, just as Syaoran remembered it. "You're silly. No, I was only in a coma. That's what Auntie Yelan said. I'm fine now though, aren't you happy?" Syaoran looked at her smiling face. Everything was just as he remembered it. Her soft voice, her quiet laughter, her polite smile; it seemed as though nothing had changed.

Syaoran frowned. Ayame put her hands around his cheeks and made a face. "Why so sad, baby? Is everything okay?"

"Yeah, everything is fine. I'm going inside for a bit.." Syaoran turned to the exit but Ayame slipped her hand around his arm and the two walked out together. It seemed awkward to him somehow. But maybe it was because he hadn't seen her in a long time, or maybe it was because he had thought she was dead, and he was still in shock. Maybe he was still dreaming..

"It doesn't feel like I've been asleep for so long! I mean, nothing's changed. I saw Yue yesterday and Auntie Yelan. But I heard Haruka got married. That's different, she was always so quiet."

Syaoran stopped walking. He turned to face her. "Why are you here?"

Ayame pouted. "Aren't you glad I'm alright?"

"Yeah, but.. so much time has passed, you know? You've been gone for almost a year."

"Yeah, but nothing's changed, right? I still love you, and you still love me. Right?"

There was an awkward pause before their conversation was interrupted by noise at the end of the hallway. Syaoran eyed Meiling, Emmalyn, Yuka, and Sakura. The four girls had already stopped in their tracks. Sakura was near the back of the group, red-faced, looking for a place to hide.

Ayame gaped as she recognized the front two girls. "Meiling! Emma!" Ayame left Syaoran's side and hugged them.

"Ayame?" Meiling gasped. She couldn't move. "Where did you come from?"

Ayame smiled. "I was in a coma. Yue and the Queen explained it all to me. They said I was dead to protect people from interfering with my treatments, or something like that. But I'm all better now!"

Emmalyn sighed at the back of her mind. Only Ayame would be dumb and naïve enough to believe some lame excuse like that. Emmalyn knew there was probably a deeper reason to why the Queen lied.

Ayame turned her sight towards Yuka and gave out her hand. "I don't think we've met; I'm Ayame, Syaoran's fiance."

Yuka didn't return the hand shake. Instead, she continued to stare strangely at the brown-eyed Sakura. "I'm sorry, I don't mean to be rude, it's just.." Yuka turned to look at Sakura, concerned for her, seeing Syaoran's supposed dead fiance all after finding out who she was, and the blow of Syaoran's words the night before.

Ayame followed Yuka's gazed and gaped when she saw Sakura. She was an exact replica of herself, minus the eyes. Just what went down while she was asleep? Ayame had expected everything to be the same. After all, it was like time hadn't passed at all. It seemed like only yesterday she had gone to class with Syaoran and took a walk with him around the park near the lake. They had dinner outdoors and she had fallen asleep.

But when she woke up, there were people she didn't recognize in the castle. And among these people was a girl who looked exactly like her!

Sakura was also confused. Why was this all happening at once? She wanted to run and hide and cry and sleep until she didn't feel hurt anymore. She wanted to hide under her bed covers and pretend like she didn't exist. She didn't even know Ayame existed until yesterday, when Syaoran had called her by the name. And now she was here, standing in front of her, an exact copy of herself, that was supposed to have passed away. Not only was she alive, but she was with Syaoran.

Sakura couldn't say anything. She couldn't find her voice to speak, or even the courage. There were so many questions going through her mind, but none of them surfaced as she stared at the couple. Sakura's heart couldn't take it anymore. She took one look at Syaoran, who was looking straight at her, and then she turned around and left as fast as her legs could carry her.

"Wait!" Syaoran said from behind Ayame, before running to follow the girl that just left.

"Syaoran!" Ayame grabbed Syaoran's sleeve, but Syaoran only looked back and pleaded.

"I need to do something, Ayame, please."

Ayame frowned, wondering why Syaoran seemed so different. There was something different about him that made her nervous and shook her once solid faith in him. She loosened her grasp and Syaoran pulled his arm away and continued to run away, further down the hallway and around the corner.

Ayame's mind was uneasy as she looked to Meiling for answers.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Eriol knocked on Tomoyo's bedroom door down by the servant's quarters. Tomoyo didn't come out of Sakura's room last night, even after waiting for 3 hours. She must have slept there.

He heard someone unlock the door. Tomoyo peeked out and frowned. "I've heard you've been snooping around the castle. Are you looking for more information on Sakura? Because if you are, I'm not the person you should be going to." She shut the door on him.

"Tomoyo! Wait, please, this is important." he pleaded, trying to get her to come out. Eriol knocked again, louder. "I need to talk to you, Tomoyo. Hear me out!" It was ironic, he thought, how one of the most powerful people in all the kingdoms was being turned down by a servant. He was a mess when it came to Tomoyo.

"What is it?" she asked angrily from behind the door.

Eriol sighed. She was so different from the other people, that threw their heads down whenever he walked by. She didn't try to suck up to him, she wasn't afraid of him. This was why he liked her.

"I need to know if Sakura carries a necklace. It has a key on it, a really important item my father gave to me." He held his breath, waiting for her reply.

"She doesn't have it." Tomoyo said. "Leave her alone. She's gone through enough."

Eriol frowned. Another dead end. He cursed inwardly. He needed to vent all his feelings out. Despite his power, he was human. Eriol let out a breath. "Thank you for your help." he said quietly as he turned and walked away.

Tomoyo opened the door. "Is everything alright?"

Eriol looked back. Just the sight of her worried face made him want to lie and say everything was okay. But he couldn't lie, not to Tomoyo. "No. It's not."

"Do you want to talk about it?" Tomoyo showed a caring smile, which Eriol returned.

"Yeah, thanks."

Tomoyo let him into her room. He sat down on one of the chairs while she made tea. He let out all that has been bothering him, about his quest and the key he gave away so long ago; how everything he did seemed to end fruitlessly; how everyone seemed to be hiding things from him.

"What do you expect? You never tell anyone anything. Of course people hide things from you."

"It's not like I'm God." Eriol threw his hands up in defeat.

Tomoyo giggled. Eriol stared at her, mesmerized. He would give anything to be normal, so he could be with Tomoyo.

"Well, your not really at a dead end yet." Tomoyo said, stirring her cup. She didn't know if it was right to be telling him, but she couldn't let him go on troubled like that. "Sakura has a brother.."

Eriol snapped back to reality and dug through his thoughts. He remembered bumping into the boy, Touya, on the way to see Tomoyo the night before. When their arms touched, he saw what Touya wanted most at that moment: it was the well-being of two girls identical in every way, except for their eyes.

"Touya.."

"You know him?"

"Yeah, I met him the night before.." Eriol stood up and made his way to the door. "Thank you so much," he said, hurriedly as he rushed out the door.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

Sakura didn't know where she was going. Nor did she care. She just wanted to get away from the sight of Syaoran and Ayame together.

It was a nightmare. Everything was happening so fast. _Why is she here? How is she here?_ Sakura let her tears fall as she ran.

"Sakura!"

She could hear him calling her name from behind her. But she couldn't stop. She didn't want to hear his explanation. She didn't want to know the reason why he mistook her for this other girl. Because, she might forgive him. And she might be let down again.

She had never fallen for anyone in her life. It was so bittersweet how this boy had taken her by surprise, somehow made his way into her heart. It hurt. It really hurt. And she didn't know how to handle it.

"Sakura! Please, wait!"

_No,_ she cried in her mind. _I can't._

"Sakura!"

As if on cue, she stumbled and fell. "Damn it!" she cursed, as Syaoran's footsteps got louder, and finally, he was behind her, gasping for breath. They were in a long hallway. No one was around. The only light was coming through the windows.

Syaoran stood there, his breath got lighter. Sakura didn't dare turn to face him and show him her tears. She wouldn't let him see her weak. She couldn't bear to see his face.

"Sakura–"

"Don't!" she said aloud, putting her hand up. "Don't speak. I don't want to hear your excuses!"

He didn't say anymore. Sakura put her hands to the floor and pushed herself up. Her knees would probably bruise by the end of the day. She brushed the dirt off her dress and wiped the tears off her face. After she mustered up enough courage, she turned around. Her eyes met his. There was so much going through her mind. It was a battle between his betrayal and her love for him.

But she knew, from the moment he said her name last night, that it was not herself he wanted.

"Lavender." she said.

"What?"

The tears were coming back now. "That day in the garden, you gave me a lavender iris, and said it was my favorite color. How did you know?"

Syaoran furrowed his brows. "I don't–"

"It's her favorite color, isn't it, Ayame's? She likes the color lavender. And because we look the same, you thought I liked it too."

Syaoran's heart sank.

"Did you take Ayame to see the fireflies, too?" Now she was angry. Was everything he had done for her something he would have done with Ayame? Sakura felt the tears coming back again. This was so embarrassing, but she couldn't stop herself. She had never been more hurt in her life.

"No, Sakura, listen to me!" He was pleading with her, taking a step closer.

"No! I don't want to!" She had never felt more selfish as far as she could think of. "You hurt me, Syaoran! You made me believe that you loved me, when all you thought of was Ayame! What can I do?" Her tears were falling now. Her knees felt weak. It took all her strength just to keep her up.

"It's not like that!" He was almost a meter away now. Sakura wanted to move, but her feet seemed like they were rooted to the floor. She didn't have the strength to move. Or maybe it was because she wanted him to reach her. She wanted him to hold her. "I made a mistake, I know, but you have to listen to me!"

"I don't have to do anything!" she screamed. "I am not the one you love!" She eyed the sword around his belt and took the hilt. There was a sharp clang as she unsheathed it. Sakura grabbed her long braided hair and cut it off. She dropped both the sword and her once long tresses to the ground. The sword echoed throughout the hallway as it hit the floor. "I am not Ayame!"

Syaoran stood here, not knowing what to do. Sakura wiped her face clean before she turned around and ran away.

This time, Syaoran did not follow.

϶ϵ ϶ϵ ϶ϵ

A/N

Oh my gosh ! I'm sorry I took so long to update ! Won't happen again (hopefully) ! So yeah, finally Ayame's back in the picture. I could have written the part about her waking up a lot better, but I'm a pretty lazy person.

If you didn't get it, _The_ _Collections of Clow_ is a book of short stories, and Eriol has to write one to complete his "quest". Every story in it is true in some way, because they come to the _Great_ _Sage_ but a vision or something. You can probably figure out who the characters in the short stories are supposed to relate to in real life.. real life as in this story.

Anyway, I'm off to play The Sims now. I'm been highly addicted to it.. not in a good way. :P Sorry for any spelling/grammar mistakes. I'm too lazy to read through it again.

Thanks for reading !


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